Description
Bury Me in Peking
Book Summary
An intimate theatrical work that explores the boundary between life and death through an elderly man's relationship with the ghost of a friend. Set in a house kitchen, the play unfolds a universe of memories, losses, and buried illusions, where the legendary Peking neighborhood, swallowed by the waters, becomes the symbolic territory of an unrecoverable past. The author invites the reader to reflect on loneliness, memory, and the meaning of life, questioning what it truly means to be alive.
What is it about?
An elderly man, confined to his kitchen, shares his time with a chessboard and the ghost of a friend who died over fifty years ago. Both are united by memories of youth, lost illusions, and Peking, a Barcelona neighborhood that was devoured by the waters and now only exists in memory. Throughout the play, the living—his daughters, sister, son-in-law, and nephew—parade through the kitchen. However, none of them manage to penetrate the old man's private, intimate, and lonely world. The play suggests that being alive is something more than breathing, moving, and speaking with others, and that, at times, the living are more dead than the ghosts.
Main Themes
- Loneliness and lack of communication within the family.
- The passage of time and the loss of youthful illusions.
- Memory as a mythical territory and emotional refuge.
- The blurred boundary between life and death.
- The urban transformation of Barcelona and the impact of the disappearance of an emblematic neighborhood.
Who is it recommended for?
For readers interested in contemporary intimate and psychological theater, as well as those looking for works that address historical memory and family relationships from a poetic and symbolic perspective. It is also recommended for students or professionals in the performing arts who wish to explore texts that question the boundary between reality and fantasy.
What this book offers
- A deep reflection on the meaning of life and the presence of the absent.
- A sensitive look at the loneliness of old age and the difficulty of communicating with loved ones.
- A literary journey to a vanished neighborhood of Barcelona, turned into a metaphor for collective losses.
- A theatrical experience that combines realism and fantastic elements with poetic and restrained language.
Technical Data
- Author: M. Mercè Cuartiella
- Publisher: Eumo Editorial SAU
- Language: Catalan
- Subject: Plays, theatrical texts
- Collection: Talia
- Binding: Paperback
- Publication date: October 2006
- Number of pages: 80
- Weight: 96 g
Editorial Review
A brief but dense work that demonstrates M. Mercè Cuartiella's ability to build a dramatic universe from minimal elements. The kitchen as a sole stage and the presence of the ghost as a privileged interlocutor generate a poetic tension that sustains the play from beginning to end. Recommended for those seeking theater that prioritizes introspection and suggestion over explicit action.