Billy's Joy

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After Billy’s Violence, Victor Afung Lauwers was asked to continue exploring Shakespeare’s theatrical universe by surveying his comedies, and so he set out to free the character of Romeo from his tragic fate.

If audiences at certain points in history, such as in the eighteenth century, who were overly sensitive to violence and tragedy changed some of the endings of Shakespeare’s plays to make the characters happy... why couldn’t Lauwers do the same today?

With Oberon and Sycorax imagined as Romeo’s parents and Juliet expelled from the story, the play transports spectators from the supposed spirituality of the Fairyland where the story is set to the most prevalent controversies today, including cancel culture, structural racism, war and climate change. Fiction is foregrounded in this tale populated by fairies, kings and queens, bears, and Snow White and the seven dwarves.

Just as in A Midsummer Night’s Dream, it’s hard to tell what’s real and what isn’t. Are the main characters tragic figures performing a comedy or comical beings immersed in a tragedy? All of this in a text that is very much in tune with the times, parodying or reflecting Shakespearean characters who here speak directly to younger audiences who are trying to carve out their own space in a Boomer world.

The screening will be held in English, Spanish and Dutch with Catalan subtitles. 

A performance in the 2024 edition of Grec Festival de Barcelona.

Sounds of the City: Summer Music Festivals

What are your plans for summer? If you’re staying in the city, you won’t be alone. Barcelona is becoming a go-to destination for festival lovers, given Catalunya’s covetable combination of culture, great weather and an increasingly diverse concert circuit. So if you’re looking to expand your horizons while staying put this season, check out our article Sounds of the City: Summer Music Festivals for a summary of the summer music events taking place in Barcelona, from big-name gatherings to boutique takeovers.

For more music events check our online events calendar.