Niebla

The character sacrifices himself in order to see what we cannot see.

Fernanda Orazi, guest director for the 25|26 season, decides to grant special recognition to the character. She does so based on the premise offered by Unamuno’s work: the author tells Augusto Pérez, tired of searching for himself, that he is a character, tragically transforming his existence.

Niebla, published in 1914, carries in its title the central metaphor of the novel: the mist that blurs the boundary between reality and fiction. Unamuno’s novel revolutionised the literature of its time through its formal daring against realism. Augusto Pérez, the protagonist, is a wealthy young man who spends much of his time talking with his friends in an attempt to find himself. When his girlfriend leaves him for another man, he turns to Unamuno, who tells him that a character cannot commit suicide. Always set in interior spaces, the characters speak about the problems of existence and the unbearable pain of discovering their own condition.

This metatheatrical premise is precisely what Fernanda Orazi has drawn upon. Fascinated by this inevitable destiny, she proposes a new version of Niebla, following her scenic model of sobriety, virtuosity and, like Unamuno himself, formal risk.

Rocío Bello
Dramaturg for the 25/26 season at Nave 10 Matadero