Description
YOU ONLY NEED TO DIE IN THE BULLRING
Book Summary
In this work, Angélica Liddell unfolds a visceral inquiry into love and death, taking the Wagnerian concept of the Liebestod as its axis. Through the intersection of the final aria of Tristan und Isolde and the figure of bullfighter Juan Belmonte, the author constructs a text that is both a confession and a ritual. The reader delves into the origin of her creative darkness and the personal abysses that fuel her theater, in a brief piece of overwhelming poetic and dramatic intensity.
What is it about?
The work is structured as a journey into the core of Angélica Liddell's artistic creation. The author starts with the Liebestod—the love-death that closes Wagner's opera—and interweaves it with the biography and mythology of the bullfighter Juan Belmonte. This crossover is not accidental: both represent a total surrender, a transit toward the limit where love and death are confused. The text is an exploration of the playwright's personal roots, her abysses, and the dark matter from which her works spring. It is not a linear narrative, but rather a poetic and confessional piece that is part of Milo Rau's Histoire(s) du théâtre III project, conceived to be performed in a high-stakes theatrical context.
Main Themes
- The Liebestod or the tragic union between love and death as a creative engine.
- The figure of the bullfighter Juan Belmonte as an archetype of absolute surrender and the defiance of death.
- Autobiographical confession as raw material for theatrical creation.
- The exploration of inner darkness and personal abysses.
- The intersection between the Wagnerian operatic tradition and Spanish popular culture.
Who is it recommended for?
It is aimed at readers and viewers interested in the most radical and poetic contemporary theater. It is also for those who follow the work of Angélica Liddell, as well as scholars of experimental dramaturgy, performance, and the intersections between opera, bullfighting, and literary creation. It is an ideal read for those seeking texts that do not shy away from rawness or deep introspection.
What this book offers
- An immersion into the creative process of one of the most striking playwrights on the current scene.
- An original reflection on love as a destructive force and a generator of art.
- A brief but dense text that concentrates great lyrical and dramatic power.
- The opportunity to access a work conceived for a top-tier international theatrical project.
Technical Specifications
- Author: Liddell, Angélica
- Publisher: Ediciones La Uña Rota
- Language: Spanish
- Subject: Plays, theatrical texts, modern and contemporary fiction
- Collection: Microrroturas
- Binding: Paperback
- Publication date: July 2021
- Number of pages: 94
- Weight: 105 g
Editorial Review
This is an essential piece for understanding the poetics of Angélica Liddell, in which the author strips bare her foundational obsessions. The work stands out for its ability to condense an intense reflection on sacrifice and creation into a few pages. Its main interest lies in the brutal honesty with which the author exposes herself, offering a key to reading the rest of her theatrical production.