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 Play most commonly refers to: * Play (activity), an activity done for enjoyment * Play (theatre), a work of drama Play may refer also to: Computers and technology * Google Play, a digital content service * Play Framework, a Java framework * P ...

combining dramatic and

comic a medium used to express ideas with images, often combined with text or other visual information. It typically the form of a sequence of panels of images. Textual devices such as speech balloons, captions, and onomatopoeia can indicat ...

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 The Medrano Academy (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Academia Medrano''), also known as the Poetic Academy of Madrid, was a prominent ''academia literaria'' of the Spanish Golden Age, founded by Dr. Sebastian Francisco de Medrano, Sebastián Francisc ...

(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 The Tribunal of the Holy Office of the Inquisition () was established in 1478 by the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, Catholic Monarchs, King Ferdinand II of Aragon and Queen Isabella I of Castile and lasted until 1834. It began toward the end of ...

, official censor of ''comedias''.

References

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

See also

References