La casa de los espíritus.

A New Play by Caridad Svich based on Isabel Allende’s novel.

Direction: Jose Zayas.

Music: Caridad Svich.

Choreography: Silvia Sierra.

Ensemble: Repertorio Español. New York / USA. 25 April 2009.

The Repertorio Español was founded in 1968 with the intention of bringing Spanish and Latin American theatre to New York City. A repertory company in the richest sense, the institution is comprised of an ensemble of actors that perform in multiple productions offered on a rotating basis. As such, Repertorio Español is a rarity in the American theatre given that most companies have eschewed the repertory model for economic reasons, and instead produce work one show at a time. 

Among the productions currently playing at Repetorio Español is a theatrically compelling, if dramaturgically incomplete, adaptation of Isabel Allende’s novel La casa de Los espíritus (The House of Spirits, first published 1982). While there is nothing overtly Brechtian about the production, CIBS readers would appreciate Jose Zayas’ direction and the play’s attention to political themes. In the latter instance, the episodic narrative transcends a linear use of time and place to tell the story of a young woman (Alba) who is being held as a political prisoner at the hands of a corrupt, yet unnamed Latin American government.  The story mixes Alba’s fantasies of her family’s history with the chilling reality of being imprisoned and subjected to torture among other things, she is raped, beaten, and electrocuted.

The family history is accessed by Alba’s memories of her grandmother’s (Clara) diary, and therein the so-called “House of Spirits” consists of her grandfather’s (Esteban) wealthy farm and the sordid events that transpired there two generations earlier. Esteban is a callous womanizer who has built his estate, Los Tres Marias, according to the corrupt and oppressive capitalist system of the unnamed country’s government. The irony of course is that his granddaughter becomes a Marxist rebel and ultimately is incarcerated for her activism. It is left to Esteban to use his government contacts to gain her release, which he does with the assistance of a former high-end prostitute he used to patronize. 

While the story is interesting, it is not without contrivance. Indeed, as dramaturgically adapted it is difficult to reconcile how Esteban, who has suffered a remarkable fall from power, can actually gain Alba’s freedom. The fact that he relies on a prostitute for assistance makes the situation even less credible. The text is beset with other implausible and incomplete scenarios such as the curse placed on Esteban by his sister Ferula, the nature of Esteban’s loss of agency, and the events of the Marxist revolution, all of which are pertinent to the narrative but are left underdeveloped. Perhaps these shortcomings can be attributed to the usual hazard of adapting a novel into a play. 

Nonetheless, La Casa De Los Espiritus proves to be a worthwhile theatre-going experience, mostly because of Zayas’ creative direction and the convincing work of his cast. An ensemble in the richest sense, Zayas’ actors move in and out of different roles with ease and credibility. Every moment is filled with a sense of dramatic truth, thereby rendering this flawed script as an intriguing narrative. Nelson Landrieu’s Esteban is particularly effective as he manages to capture the role’s contradictoriness - he is as dastardly as he can be empathetic. Denise Quiñones’ Alba and Rosie Berridos’ Ferula round out a host of moving performances: twelve actors play twenty-six parts throughout the work. This accomplishment is undoubtedly the result of the company’s repertory production model, and as such, a reminder of how valuable it is to work as an artistic collective, much the way Brecht did with the Berliner Ensemble. 

Zayas’ direction blends a masterful confluence of music, light, and video projections to complement his staging. Whereas Brecht would rather the elements of the mise en scene to be foregrounded and distinct, Zayas uses them to jointly accentuate the moods and tones of the text. For example, the play opens with Alba being tortured upstage as faint images of a nondescript prisoner suffering a similar fate are projected onto a scrim positioned downstage. Simultaneously, Caridad Svich’s music and Ricardo Bustamante’s lighting underscore the scene with chilling precision. While the adaptation of the novel may be lacking in clarity, its direction is meticulous to the point of offering a unique theatre experience. Repertorio Español is indeed a special part of the New York City theatrical landscape.