Ay Carmela! is a play by José Sanchis Sinisterra

José Sanchis Sinisterra

José Sanchis Sinisterra is a Spanish playwright and theatre director. He was born in Valencia. He is best known, outside of Spain, for his award-winning play, ¡Ay Carmela!.-Publications:...

. It is set in the opening months of the Spanish Civil War

Spanish Civil War

The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...

. Heavily allegorical, it tells the story of travelling players, Carmela and Paulino, who blunder into the wrong place at the wrong time. A film of the same name - ¡Ay Carmela! - was released in 1990.The play takes its name from a popular Spanish Civil war song Ay Carmela

Ay Carmela (song)

The lyrics to this Republican song, which is also known as El Paso del Ebro and Viva la XV Brigada, date from the Spanish Civil War. The melody, however, is a folk tune of far greater antiquity, dating back to the early 19th century. For comparative purposes, the links are: , , and -Lyrics:...

.

Originally written in Spanish, it toured in 2006 in the UK in Englishhttp://www.thestage.co.uk/reviews/review.php/14150/ay-carmela.

Scripts

• Ñaque, Ay, Carmela! by José Sanchis Sinisterra
  José Sanchis Sinisterra
  José Sanchis Sinisterra is a Spanish playwright and theatre director. He was born in Valencia. He is best known, outside of Spain, for his award-winning play, ¡Ay Carmela!.-Publications:...
  
   (Spanish, paperback) Ediciones Catedra, 1991). ISBN 978-843-7610-344
• Ay, Carmela! by José Sanchis Sinisterra
  José Sanchis Sinisterra
  José Sanchis Sinisterra is a Spanish playwright and theatre director. He was born in Valencia. He is best known, outside of Spain, for his award-winning play, ¡Ay Carmela!.-Publications:...
  
  , trans. John London (English, paperback) New Theatre Publications, 2003. ISBN 978-184-094-3221

US Premiere, Gala Theater, Washington DC, Sep 15 - Oct 9, 2011

Gala Theater, Washington DC, Sep 15 - Oct 9, 2011

GALA Hispanic Theatre presents ¡Ay, Carmela!

Wide-ranging and stirring ‘¡Ay, Carmela!’ at GALA Theatre

The life and death of a Spanish dancer

"¡Ay, Carmela!" se estrena en Washington dirigida por José Luis Arellano

Love and war at Gala