Have you ever heard that word before? Zarzuela, I looked up the definition in the wikipedia so I could start off by giving you the technical definition before I go on with my interpretation of what is all means.

According to wikipedia The Zarzuela is:

a Spanish lyric-dramatic genre that alternates between spoken and sung scenes, the latter incorporating operatic and popular song, as well as dance. The name derives from a Royal hunting lodge, the Palacio de la Zarzuela near Madrid, where this type of entertainment was first presented to the court.

Ok, so now here is what I know, you can say Zarzuela is a Spanish version of an opera, it has actors, singers and dancers with one difference zarzuelas differ from opera´s in that they include spoken sections interspersed between the singing and a rather different tone. The art form of Zarzuela has been around for about 350 years and is still fairly popular in Spain.

If you are interested in viewing a Zarzuela I recommend starting with a light version one such as La verbena de la paloma (The Pharmacist and the Girls), which was composed by Tomás Bretón with a libretto by Ricardo de la Vega, one of my favorites.

to see a show | teatro de la zarzuela