Crossroads, and Other Plays

This is a collection, in translation, of eight plays by Carlos Solorzano - one of the foremost playwrights of modern Latin America. The collection offers the reader a representative cross section of different styles and themes in the Mexican dramatist's theater. Carlos Solorzano was born in 1922 to a prominent and wealthy family in San Marcos, Guatemala. Yet he is most closely identified with Mexico, where he has lived and worked since 1929. In 1948, a grant from the Rockefeller Foundation brought him to Paris for studies at the Sorbonne. During his studies, he became acquainted with many of the leading men of letters of the time, among them Camus and Ghelderode, whose influence is reflected in his work. Solorzano's interest in theater and academic activities continued when he returned to Mexico City. Among other positions, he served as the director of the Teatro Universitario as well as the director of the Museo Nacional de Teatro. He taught at several universities in the United States, too - including Columbia University, the University of Southern California, and the University of Kansas. He is presently "Professor de Carrera" at the Universidad Autonoma and editor, for Latin America, of the Enciclopedia Mundial del Teatro Contemporaneo. His contributions to the theater in Latin America range from articles in theater journals to theater histories and anthologies to the original plays that concern us here. His extraordinary work in this last area of contribution was recognized in 1989 when he received the "Premio Nacional de Literatura 'Miguel Angel Asturias'" in Guatemala, an honor which, in his words, "me lleno de satisfaccion." In this volume, Francesca Colecchia presents us with plays by Solorzano that will give us pause to think. Here are intriguing works - the themes ranging from a reenactment of Christ's crucifixion to a political allegory to an exploration of the reason for man's existence. Again and again coming to the fore is the playwright's fundamental concern with man's right to self-determination, not only in the political sphere, but in the intellectual and spiritual spheres as well. Though writing in Spanish and using what is essentially Mexican as a point of departure for his plays, Solorzano transcends regional circumstances in his theater, transforming them into the more universal questions confronting all men.