Àngel Guimerà i Jorge, born in 1845 in Santa Cruz de Tenerife and died in 1924 in Barcelona, is above all the author of dramatic works such as Terra baixa, Mar i cel, Maria Rosa or La filla del mar. But the playwright had a public dimension that can be claimed today.
On the occasion of the centenary of his death, the Institució de les Lletres Catalanes (ILC) organizes the Any Guimerà, dedicated to this great man who, if he were alive today, would be considered a celebrity, due to the popularity of his plays and his cultural activity.
The director of the ILC, Izaskun Arretxe, considers that Guimerà is "surely the most emblematic author of our dramaturgy, with national and international projection already in his time."
"Guimerà was somewhat overshadowed by Verdaguer, especially in his poetic side, but he was a very popular author. He is the living heritage of our theater, which we have been able to verify in the preparation of this commemoration," continues the director.
El Vendrell, which is the host town of Àngel Guimerà and where his ancestral home is located, will host the opening of this centenary, on February 23. The closing will be held at the TNC de Catalunya on November 26.
In fact, the Teatre Nacional de Catalunya will announce some of Guimerà's works when it presents, in May, the 24-25 season. But for now the institutions have not wanted to reveal this surprise or which works, in addition to the four mentioned, will be claimed this year.
Needless to say, activities of all kinds and throughout the territory, public and private, will mark this commemoration, curated by the philologist Ramon Bacardit, a scholar of 19th-century Catalan theater.
Any Guimerà is marked by three objectives. The first, to make known the full breadth of his dramatic work. The second, his status as a poet and the value of his poetry. And the third, remember his role as a vocalizer of Catalanism and his character as a popular icon.
