List of Calderón's plays in English translation
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Pedro Calderón de la Barca was a Spanish Golden Age playwright who — from the beginning of his theatrical career in the 1620s to his death in 1681 — wrote about 120 comedias and about 80 autos sacramentales.[1] About 40 of these have been translated into English, at least three during Calderón's own lifetime; La vida es sueño (Life is a Dream), "a work many hold to be the supreme example of Spanish Golden Age drama",[2] exists in around 20 English versions.[3]
Key
- Spanish Title — The original comedia or auto that serves as the basis of the English text.
- English Title — The title of the English text, as it appears in the particular translation. Because one Spanish title may suggest alternate English titles (e.g. Life is a Dream, Life's a Dream, Such Stuff as Dreams are Made Of), sorting by this column is not a reliable way to group all translations of a particular original together; to do so, sort on Spanish Title.
- Year — The year of the translation's first publication (except where * indicates "first production"). Some translations were written or produced earlier than this date, and some were republished subsequently, but this is not noted here.
- Publication — The publication in which the translation first appeared. When the publication consisted only of the single named play this information is not repeated, except in cases where the publication title is used as an external link to the work, or when it is matched with an ISBN.
- Notes — May indicate the style of translation or significant republications; "auto" indicates an auto sacramentale; all other works are comedias.
Table
Spanish Title | English Title | Year | Translator | Publication | Notes |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Peor está que estaba | Worse and Worse | 1664?* | Digby, George | not extant | performed at the Duke's Theatre between 1662 and 1665[4] |
Mejor está que estaba | 'Tis Better than It Was | 1664?* | Digby, George | not extant | performed at the Duke's Theatre July 1664[4] |
No siempre lo peor es cierto | Elvira: or, The Worst is Not Always True | 1667 | Digby, George | first performed at Lincoln's Inn Fields November 1664;[4] reprinted in Robert Dodsley's Select Collection of Old Plays Vol 12 on Internet Archive | |
La Dama Duende | Woman is a Riddle | 1718 | Bullock, Christopher (& others?) | Woman is a Riddle on Internet Archive | |
El escondido y la tapada | 'Tis Well It's No Worse | 1786 | Bickerstaffe, Isaac | 'Tis Well It's No Worse on Internet Archive | |
Peor está que estaba | From Bad to Worse | 1805 | Holcroft, Fanny | The Theatrical Recorder 1805 Vol 1 | prose |
Mejor está que estaba | Fortune Mends | 1806 | Holcroft, Fanny | The Theatrical Recorder 1806 Vol 2 | |
La Dama Duende | The Fairy Lady | 1807 | Holland, Lord (anonymously) | Three Comedies Translated from the Spanish on Internet Archive | prose |
Nadie fie su secreto | Keep Your Own Secret | 1807 | Holland, Lord (anonymously) | Three Comedies Translated from the Spanish on Internet Archive | prose |
El Magico Prodigioso | The Wonder-Working Magician (scenes) | 1824 | Shelley, Percy Bysshe | Posthumous Poems on Internet Archive | blank verse; major fragments, comprising much of the main plot; reprinted in The Classic Theatre III: Six Spanish Plays, ed. Eric Bentley (1959) |
La Vida es Sueño | Life, a Dream | 1830 | Cowan, Malcolm (anonymously) | ||
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1842 | Oxenford, John | The Monthly Magazine (Vol XCVI, p. RA1-PA255, at Google Books: Nos DXLIX, DL, DLI) | blank verse |
El Magico Prodigioso | Justina | 1848 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence (as "J. H.") | Justina: a play on Internet Archive | verse; retranslated as The Wonder-Working Magician in Calderon’s Dramas (1873) |
El pintor de su deshonra | The Painter of His Own Dishonor | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
Nadie fie su secreto | Keep Your Own Secret | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
Luis Pérez, el gallego | Gil Perez, the Gallician | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
Las tres justicias en una | Three Judgements at a Blow | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
El Alcalde de Zalamea | The Mayor of Zalamea | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
Guárdate del agua mansa | Beware of Smooth Water | 1853 | Fitzgerald, Edward | Six Dramas of Calderon | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted” ; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
El Principe Constant | The Constant Prince | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 1 on Internet Archive | imitative verse; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
El Secreto a Voces | The Secret in Words | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 1 on Internet Archive | imitative verse |
El médico de su honra | The Physician of His Own Honour | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 1 on Internet Archive | imitative verse |
Amar despues de la Muerte | Love After Death | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 2 on Internet Archive | imitative verse; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
El Purgatorio de San Patricio | The Purgatory of St. Patrick | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 2 on Internet Archive | imitative verse; revised version published in Calderon’s Dramas (1873) |
La Banda y la Flor | The Scarf and the Flower | 1853 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Dramas of Calderon, Tragic, Comic, and Legendary, Vol 2 on Internet Archive | imitative verse |
La Vida es Sueño | Life's a Dream (passages) | 1856 | Trench, Richard Chenevix | Life's a Dream; The Great Theatre of the World on Internet Archive | not a complete translation, but many significant passages with commentary interspersed |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World (passages) | 1856 | Trench, Richard Chenevix | Life's a Dream; The Great Theatre of the World on Internet Archive | auto; not a complete translation, but many significant passages with commentary interspersed |
Los Encantos de la Culpa | The Sorceries of Sin | 1859 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | The Atlantis: a Register of Literature and Science Vol II on Internet Archive pp 277-323 | auto; imitative verse; bilingual edition; reprinted in Love the Greatest Enchantment, The Sorceries of Sin, The Devotion of the Cross. From the Spanish of Calderon (1861) on Internet Archive |
El Mayor Encanto Amor | Love the Greatest Enchantment | 1861 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Love the Greatest Enchantment, The Sorceries of Sin, The Devotion of the Cross. From the Spanish of Calderon on Internet Archive | imitative verse; bilingual edition |
La Devoción de la Cruz | The Devotion of the Cross | 1861 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Love the Greatest Enchantment, The Sorceries of Sin, The Devotion of the Cross. From the Spanish of Calderon on Internet Archive | imitative verse; bilingual edition; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
El Magico Prodigioso | The Mighty Magician | 1865 | Fitzgerald, Edward | The Mighty Magician; Such Stuff as Dreams are Made Of | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted”; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
La Vida es Sueño | Such Stuff as Dreams are Made Of | 1865 | Fitzgerald, Edward | The Mighty Magician; Such Stuff as Dreams are Made Of | blank verse and prose, “freely adapted”; reprinted in Eight Dramas of Calderon (1906) on Internet Archive |
La cena del rey Baltazar | Belshazzar’s Feast | 1867 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Mysteries of Corpus Christi on Internet Archive | auto; imitative verse; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
La Divina Filotéa | The Divine Philothea | 1867 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Mysteries of Corpus Christi on Internet Archive | auto; imitative verse |
El Veneno y la Triaca | The Poison and the Antidote (first scene only) | 1867 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Mysteries of Corpus Christi on Internet Archive | auto; imitative verse |
Los dos amantes del cielo: Crisanto y Daria | The Two Lovers of Heaven: Chysanthus and Daria | 1869 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | The Atlantis: a Register of Literature and Science Vol V on Internet Archive Article II, pp 13-68 | imitative verse; reprinted in The Two Lovers of Heaven: Chysanthus and Daria. A drama of early Christian Rome (1870) on Internet Archive |
La Vida es Sueño | Life Is a Dream | 1873 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Calderon’s Dramas on Internet Archive | imitative verse; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
El Magico Prodigioso | The Wonder-Working Magician | 1873 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Calderon’s Dramas on Internet Archive | imitative verse; reprinted with revisions by Henry W. Wells in Calderon de la Barca: Six Plays (1961) |
El Purgatorio de San Patricio | The Purgatory of St. Patrick (revised) | 1873 | Mac-Carthy, Denis Florence | Calderon’s Dramas on Internet Archive | imitative verse |
El Alcalde de Zalamea | Nobility; or The Alcalde of Zalamea | 1885 | Pierra, Adolfo | ||
El gran príncipe de Fez | The Prince of Fez | 1905 | Kaenders, Peter | The prince of Fez; a drama in three acts, adapted from Don Calderon de la Barca | |
La Vida es Sueño | Life’s a Dream | 1925 | Birch, Frank & J. B. Trend | stage version, prose and verse | |
La cena del rey Baltazar | The Feast of Belshazzar | 1934 | Jones, Willis Knapp | Spanish one act plays in English : a comprehensive anthology of Spanish drama from the 12th century to the present | auto |
El desafío de Juan Rana | Juan Rana's Duel | 1934 | Jones, Willis Knapp | Spanish one act plays in English : a comprehensive anthology of Spanish drama from the 12th century to the present | |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great World-Theatre | 1955 | Sipman, Francis E. | auto | |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World | 1957 | Graves, John Clarus | The Great Theatre of the World; based on a theme from Calderon | auto |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World | 1957 | Singleton, Mack Hendricks | Masterpieces of the Spanish Golden Age, ed. Angel Flores | auto |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1958 | Colford, William E | ||
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World | 1958 | Graves, Clarus J. & Cuthbert G. Soukup | The Great Theatre of the World: [A Morality Play] Based on a Theme from Calderón | auto |
Amar despues de la Muerte | Love After Death | 1959 | Campbell, Roy | The Classic Theatre III: Six Spanish Plays, ed. Eric Bentley | blank verse |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1959 | Campbell, Roy | The Classic Theatre III: Six Spanish Plays, ed. Eric Bentley | blank verse; reprinted in Life Is A Dream and Other Spanish Classics, ed. Eric Bentley (1985) |
El Alcalde de Zalamea | The Mayor of Zalamea | 1959 | Colford, William E | ||
El médico de su honra | The Surgeon of His Honour | 1960 | Campbell, Roy | blank verse; acting edition | |
A Secreto Agravio, Secreta Venganza | Secret Vengeance for Secret Insult | 1961 | Honig, Edwin | Calderon: Four Plays | loose syllabic verse; reprinted in Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays (1993) ISBN 1-882763-05-X |
La Devoción de la Cruz | Devotion to the Cross | 1961 | Honig, Edwin | Calderon: Four Plays | loose syllabic verse; reprinted in Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays (1993) ISBN 1-882763-05-X |
El Alcalde de Zalamea | The Mayor of Zalamea | 1961 | Honig, Edwin | Calderon: Four Plays | loose syllabic verse; reprinted in Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays (1993) ISBN 1-882763-05-X |
La Dama Duende | The Phantom Lady | 1961 | Honig, Edwin | Calderon: Four Plays | loose syllabic verse; reprinted in Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays (1993) ISBN 1-882763-05-X |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Stage of the World | 1964 | Brandt, George W. | The Great Stage of the World: An Allegorical Auto Sacramental in Three Acts/Gran teatro del mundo | auto |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1968 | Raine, Kathleen | Life is a Dream ISBN 978-0241015490 | verse |
La cena del rey Baltazar | King Belshazzar's Feast | 1969 | Barnes, R. G. | Three Spanish Sacramental Plays ISBN 978-0951440308 | auto |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1970 | Honig, Edwin | Life is a Dream ISBN 0-8090-6556-8 | loose syllabic verse; reprinted in Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays (1993) ISBN 1-882763-05-X |
El astrólogo fingido | The Fake Astrologer | 1976 | Oppenheimer, Max, Jr. | The Fake Astrologer ISBN 978-0820421667 | reprinted in Pedro Calderón de la Barca's The Fake Astrologer: A Critical Spanish Text and English Translation (1994) |
Peor está que estaba | From Bad to Worse | 1980 | Muir, Kenneth | Four Comedies by Pedro Calderón de la Barca ISBN 0-8131-1409-8 | blank verse and prose |
El secreto a voces | The Secret Spoken Aloud | 1980 | Muir, Kenneth | Four Comedies by Pedro Calderón de la Barca ISBN 0-8131-1409-8 | blank verse and prose |
No siempre lo peor es cierto | The Worst is not Always Certain | 1980 | Muir, Kenneth | Four Comedies by Pedro Calderón de la Barca ISBN 0-8131-1409-8 | blank verse and prose |
Dicha y desdicha del nombre | The Advantages and Disadvantages of a Name | 1980 | Muir, Kenneth | Four Comedies by Pedro Calderón de la Barca ISBN 0-8131-1409-8 | blank verse and prose |
El Magico Prodigioso | The Prodigious Magician | 1982 | Wardropper, Bruce W. | The Prodigious Magician ISBN 978-8473171113 | prose; bilingual edition |
Guárdate del agua mansa | Beware of Still Waters | 1984 | Gitlitz, David M. | Beware of Still Waters ISBN 978-0939980048 | bilingual edition |
Casa con dos puertas mala es de guardar | A House With Two Doors Is Difficult to Guard | 1985 | Muir, Kenneth & Ann L. Mackenzie | Calderón: Three Comedies ISBN 0-8131-1546-9 | blank verse and prose |
Mañanas de abril y mayo | Mornings of April and May | 1985 | Muir, Kenneth & Ann L. Mackenzie | Calderón: Three Comedies ISBN 0-8131-1546-9 | blank verse and prose |
No hay burlas con el amor | No Trifling With Love | 1985 | Muir, Kenneth & Ann L. Mackenzie | Calderón: Three Comedies ISBN 0-8131-1546-9 | blank verse and prose |
No hay burlas con el amor | Love is no laughing matter | 1986 | Cruickshank, Don & Sean Page | Love is no laughing matter ISBN 978-0856683664 | |
El pintor de su deshonra | The Painter of His Dishonour | 1989 | Paterson, A. K. G. | The Painter of His Dishonour ISBN 978-0856683466 | |
El Alcalde de Zalamea | The Mayor of Zalamea | 1990 | Mitchell, Adrian | Three Plays ISBN 978-0948230264 | verse, from literal translations by Gwenda Pandolfi |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World | 1990 | Mitchell, Adrian | Three Plays ISBN 978-0948230264 | auto; verse, from literal translations by Gwenda Pandolfi |
La Vida es Sueño | Life’s a Dream | 1990 | Mitchell, Adrian & John Barton | Three Plays ISBN 978-0948230264 | verse, from literal translations by Gwenda Pandolfi |
La cisma de Inglaterra | The Schism in England | 1990 | Muir, Kenneth & Ann L. Mackenzie | The Schism in England ISBN 0-85668-331-0 | blank verse; bilingual edition |
El médico de su honra | The Surgeon of Honour | 1991 | Edwards, Gwynne | Calderón: Plays: One ISBN 978-0413634603 | |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a dream | 1991 | Edwards, Gwynne | Calderón: Plays: One ISBN 978-0413634603 | |
Las tres justicias en una | Three Judgments in One | 1991 | Edwards, Gwynne | Calderón: Plays: One ISBN 978-0413634603 | |
El pintor de su deshonra | The Painter of His Own Dishonor | 1991 | Paterson, A. K. G. | The Painter of His Own Dishonor ISBN 9780856683473 | bilingual edition |
Los Cabellos de Absalón | The Crown of Absalom | 1993 | Honig, Edwin | Calderón de la Barca: Six Plays ISBN 1-882763-05-X | loose syllabic verse |
El pintor de su deshonra | The Painter of Dishonour | 1995 | Johnston, David & Laurence Boswell | The Painter of Dishonour ISBN 978-0948230882 | |
El médico de su honra | The Physician of His Honour | 1997 | Hindley, Donald | The Physician of His Honour ISBN 9780856687778 | bilingual edition; revised translation published in 2007 |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 1998 | Clifford, John | ||
Sueños hay que verdad son | Sometimes Dreams Come True | 1998 | McGaha, Michael | The Story of Joseph in Spanish Golden Age Drama ISBN 978-0838753804 | auto |
La Vida es Sueño | Life's a Dream | 2004 | Kidd, Michael | Life's a Dream ISBN 9780856688966 | |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 2006 | Racz, Gregary J. | Life is a Dream ISBN 978-0-14-310482-7 | imitative verse |
La Vida es Sueño | Life's a Dream | 2008 | Davis, Rick | Calderón De La Barca, Four Great Plays of the Golden Age ISBN 978-1575255965 | |
La Dama Duende | The Phantom Lady | 2008 | Davis, Rick | Calderón De La Barca, Four Great Plays of the Golden Age ISBN 978-1575255965 | |
El Principe Constant | The Constant Prince | 2008 | Davis, Rick | Calderón De La Barca, Four Great Plays of the Golden Age ISBN 978-1575255965 | |
El gran teatro del mundo | The Great Theatre of the World | 2008 | Davis, Rick | Calderón De La Barca, Four Great Plays of the Golden Age ISBN 978-1575255965 | auto |
La Vida es Sueño | Life is a Dream | 2010 | Edmundson, Helen | Life is a Dream ISBN 978-1848420601 | |
El mayor monstruo los celos | Jealousy the Greatest Monster | 2014 | Muir, Kenneth & Ann L. Mackenzie & José María Ruano de la Haza | Jealousy the Greatest Monster ISBN 9780856683695 | bilingual edition |
Notes
References
- Holland, Peter, ed. (1981), The Plays of William Wycherley, Plays by Renaissance and Restoration Dramatists, Cambridge: University Press
- Pane, Remigio Ugo (1944), English translations from the Spanish, 1484-1943, New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press
- Payne, John Howard (1940), Hislop, Codman; Richardson, W. R., eds., The Last Duel in Spain & Other Plays, America’s Lost Plays VI, Princeton: Princeton University Press
- Racz, Gregary (2006), Pedro Calderón de la Barca: Life is a Dream, Penguin, ISBN 978-0-14-310482-7
- Riera, Jorge Braga (2009), Classical Spanish Drama in Restoration English (1660-1700), Benjamins Translation Library 85, Philadelphia: John Benjamins Publishing Company, ISBN 978-90-272-8905-6
External links
- Online bibliography
- Additional translated texts available online