L'Arquitecte

With festivities mostly done, the good food eaten and New Years’ resolutions forgotten, it’s easy for January to be a depressing slide back to normality.

Here’s a thought though; why not have one last hurrah and set the tone for a tremendously stylish 2011? The theatre has always had a romantic feel to it, that buzz of sophistication that turns you into an intellectual for the night. So why not dust down your smart gear, book a table for dinner and get a pair of tickets to L’Arquitecte.

Written by Scottish playwright David Greig, The Architect follows the rise and fall of Leo Black (his profession hopefully clear). Leo is an idealist and was responsible for a revolutionary housing scheme that may have been elegant on paper 20 years ago, but is now despised. Take a peek at his family life and you’ll see a similar pattern of steady decay and escalating problems. His wife is crazed by the pollution around her and the children, now in their twenties, feel imprisoned in the family home.

The crumbling career and family life of Leo Black comes to the Barcelona stage under the guidance of Spanish director Julio Manrique. It will be performed in Catalan from January 12th to February 13th but don’t let that put you off. You could pretend to understand it or just play it safe and read the Castilian and English subtitles available at all Thursday and Saturday shows from January 20th. Purse strings will understandably be tight after the Christmas period but with tickets starting at €13 there’s really no excuse.

A trip to the theatre is really just a movie night in with that extra touch of class. You may not be slouched on the sofa or dressed in your PJs and no, you can’t pause it, nip to the toilet and ask for an explanation, but at least you can still get some ice-cream.

L’Arquitecte  - January 12th to February 13th, 2011  - Teatre Lliure