In the

Spanish Golden Age The Spanish Golden Age (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Siglo de Oro'', , "Golden Century"; 1492 – 1681) was a period of literature and the The arts, arts in Spain that coincided with the political rise of the Spanish Empire under the Catholic M ...

(Siglo de Oro) tradition, a ''comedia'' is a three-act play combining dramatic and comic elements. The principal characters are noblemen (''galanes''; : ''galán'') and ladies (''damas'') who work out a plot involving love, jealousy, honor and sometimes also piety or patriotism. Supporting characters include comical servants (''

gracioso The ''gracioso'' () is a clown or jester in Comedia (Spanish play), Spanish comedy of the 16th century. Clarín, the clown in Pedro Calderón de la Barca's ''Life is a dream'' is recognized as a gracioso. Benjamin Ivry describes the ''gracioso'' ...

s'') who assist their employers in carrying out the action. Largely created and defined by

Lope de Vega Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio (; 25 November 156227 August 1635) was a Spanish playwright, poet, and novelist who was a key figure in the Spanish Golden Age (1492–1659) of Spanish Baroque literature, Baroque literature. In the literature of ...

, the style is defined by a mixture of tragedy and comedy. Originally referred to loosely as "tragicomedy", the name was eventually shortened to simply "''comedia''". Dr. Sebastián Francisco de Medrano, founder and president of the Medrano Academy (1616–1622), became the

commissioner A commissioner (commonly abbreviated as Comm'r) is, in principle, a member of a commission or an individual who has been given a commission (official charge or authority to do something). In practice, the title of commissioner has evolved to incl ...

of the Spanish Inquisition, official censor of ''comedias''.

References

Theatrical genres Spanish Golden Age literary genres {{theatre-stub

See also

References