Farce, Carnival and Court in Amor, gran laberinto by Sebastián Salazar Bondy

Abstract

This article aims to explain the use of the farce subgenre in the play Amor, gran laberinto (farce in two acts and an epilogue) by Peruvian playwright Sebastián Salazar Bondy. We propose to contextualize the piece within the early years of a foundational generation for Peruvian dramaturgy in the mid-20th century, characterized by state institutional support and the tension between new dramaturgy and earlier aesthetic proposals. Additionally, we will delineate the aesthetic proposals of the farcical subgenre in theater to understand its particularities in relation to comedy and tragedy. Finally, we will analyze key scenes from
Amor, gran laberinto to illustrate the resources employed by the playwright in composing this farce. We conclude that Salazar Bondy conducts a unique dramaturgical experiment by utilizing the aesthetics of the grotesque to assess the limits of representation and characterization of characters in a farce that, through its theatrical resources, manages to express a dramatic conflict without committing to a singular interpretation.