"Siglo Latinx: the study of twenty-first century adaptations of Spanish Golden Age comedias, which are inclusive and accessible, by Latinx artists."
(Cowling & Nieto-Cuebas)
Siglo Latinx is a project dedicated to studying twenty-first-century adaptations of Spanish Golden Age comedias created by Latinx artists in North America (Canada, United States, and Mexico) to be inclusive and accessible. The project draws upon the expertise of scholars from various academic disciplines, including cultural studies, social psychology, and critical literary theory, all relevant to the study of theatre performance. The principal aim is to promote Latinx adaptations and gain insight into how Latinx artists stage and present their works, creating opportunities for socially and collectively transformative encounters. This involves revisiting, appropriating, and adapting the plays according to specific contexts, thus creating more inclusive and diverse spaces for new audiences across multiple generations.
Siglo + Latinx = Siglo Latinx
(Cowling & Nieto-Cuebas. Fragment from book manuscript under contract with University of Toronto Press. Please, cite accordingly.)
Siglo comes from Siglo de Oro, the period from 1550-1700 that was considered the height of Spanish cultural production, particularly theater.
Latinx is a more recent term that is still very much under debate as to its exact definition and application. It is generally accepted as a "gender-non-binary term for people from a shared colonial heritage of the Americas who reside in the United States” (Della Gatta & Boffone 40).
"Siglo Latinx is a new line of research created by Associate Professors Glenda Y. Nieto-Cuebas (Ohio Wesleyan University) and Erin Alice Cowling (MacEwan University). This is a interdisciplinary sub-discipline that encompasses theatre interpretation studies, Hispanic studies, social psychology, and critical literary theory. We also aim to include more Latinx artists in diaspora throughout North America, given the tensions that have marked the relationships of the three countries that make-up the United States—Mexico—Canada Agreement (formerly NAFTA). The term Siglo Latinx thus refers to the study of twenty-first century adaptations of Spanish Golden Age comedias, which are new inclusive and accessible, by Latinx artists. The work being done by these artists allows Latinx people to reclaim and reform these "classic" works as their own, inserting their cultural importance over texts that are marked by colonial influences. This Siglo is their siglo."
"The authors upcoming book focuses on how Siglo Latinx theatre practitioners are creating new adaptations for contemporary audiences by highlighting and creating awareness of their own realities, lived experiences, and sociocultural backgrounds as BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) artists in North America. They are studying and addressing the work of prominent companies (US: Repertorio Español and Teatro Círculo; Canada: Puente Theatre and Aluna Theatre) and independent artists (Octavio Solís, Adrianne Dawes, Estefanía Fadul, among others) who are rewriting and recontextualizing Hispanic Classical texts in order to promote socially transformative experiences for diverse audiences."
"Their goal is to popularize the work of Latinx creators that, although well-known and established in their own regions, are lesser known by mainstream audiences and less studied by scholars and/or students dedicated to theatre, performance, Hispanic, Latinx, or early modern studies. They also aim to draw attention to and boost the recognition of new, inclusive, and accessible adaptations of Hispanic classical plays and help promote them."
(Cowling & Nieto-Cuebas. Fragment from book manuscript under contract with University of Toronto Press. Please, cite accordingly.)
To review some of the work already being done on this project, please see the scholarship page.
This project has been generously supported by the following grants and funds:
The Insight Grant Program, SSHRC (Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council), Government of Canada
The 2023 SIG (SSHRC Internal Grants), Office of Research Services, MacEwan University
The 2022 Project Grant Fund, Office of Research Services, MacEwan University
The Theory to Practice Grant, Ohio Wesleyan University
Image #1 credit: Israel Franco Muller. Scene of Fuente Ovejuna by Teatro Círculo (2022). Used with permission of Israel Franco Muller.
Image #2 credit: Israel Franco Muller. Scene of Entremés de Cervantes by Teatro Círculo (2019). Used with permission of Israel Franco Muller.
Image #3 credit: Israel Franco Muller. Scene of La vida es sueño by Teatro Círculo (2021). Used with permission of Israel Franco Muller.
Image #4 credit: Israel Franco Muller. Scene of El burlador de Sevilla by Teatro Círculo (2018). Used with permission of Israel Franco Muller.