Con un vals en la maleta: viaje y aclimatación de la opereta europea en España

Abstract

The European operetta is a genre of comedic lyric theatre containing examples which despite having very different formal characteristics share the same aesthetic code. From the 1860’s until well into the 20th century the Spanish stage continuously hosted many operettas of diverse national origins, both in original versions and translations to second languages, adapting a multitude of titles into our own tongues (primarily Castilian and to a lesser extent Catalan). These adaptations were almost without exception made by zarzuela companies and creators, which produced a symbiosis between operetta and zarzuela with significant consequences for the Hispanic lyric stage. This article sets out to analyse the process of adapting foreign operettas to the necessities of Spanish theatre, and to make an initial approach towards evaluating the scope of an artistic phenomenon completely forgotten today.