Andrómeda y Perseo

Operatic version of the Baroque play by Pedro Calderón de la Barca, adapted by Álvaro Tato and staged by the Joven Compañía Nacional de Teatro Clásico at the Teatro de la Comedia. It fuses theatre and music from a contemporary perspective.

Andrómeda y Perseo is an operatic version of the Baroque play by Pedro Calderón de la Barca, adapted by Álvaro Tato, with musical direction by Aarón Zapico. Stage management is in the hands of Nuria Castejón, and the production blends theatre and music from a contemporary viewpoint.

The plot follows Perseo, son of Júpiter and Dánae, destined to perform great feats. After defeating Medusa and cutting off her head, he arrives in Etiopía, where he meets Princess Andrómeda, who is to be handed over as prey to a sea beast because of the arrogance of her mother, Casiopea, who claimed her daughter surpassed the sea deities in beauty. Perseo falls in love with her, faces the monster after a series of combats and frees her, and the two end up united.

The production brings to the fore violence against women through episodes from the myth, such as the rape of Dánae by Júpiter, the sacrifice of Andrómeda or the divine rejection of Medusa. The cast includes sopranos Pilar Alva-Martín and Maëlys Robinne and countertenor Gabriel Díaz. The set design is elaborate and the versatile costumes condense Golden Age symbolism.