José Sacristán stars in and directs, at the Teatre Romea in Barcelona, ’The Son of the Comic’, a tribute to Fernando Fernan-Gómez: “I have never done anything so personal.”
In a press conference this Wednesday, he explained that the work is based on ‘The Yellow Time 1921-1943’, memoirs by the playwright Fernán-Gómez, a friend of Sacristán, which act at the same time as “chronicles of Spain at that time.”
Sacristán, who plays up to 15 characters in the play, explains that before tackling it he was afraid that he would not get the profile and essence of the message right, but that he finally believes he did.
The work premiered in Avilés a year ago – with a “formidable” response from the public, according to its creator – and can be seen at the Romea from this Wednesday until October 4.
“UNDERSTANDING LIFE FROM DIGNITY”
“I think that with the tribute to Fernando we are not only honoring an essential part of the culture of this country, even of Europe,” the actor noted.
For him, it is also a collective tribute “to a time, to a people, to a way of surviving, of understanding life from dignity, sacrifice, effort, without losing at any time either dignity or aspirations for a better life.”
Sacristán has also highlighted the tone of the work, endearing but without falling into tenderness “or easy concessions to emotion”, something that, he assures, Fernán-Gómez would have taken care of.
Nor has he wanted to imitate him: “There is an air, something revolves around the figure of Fernando, but an imitation would have been reckless.”
Asked about a possible memoir of his, Sacristán, 89, pointed out that a couple of editorials had “shot him” but that those initiatives came to nothing, although he affirms that he does not lose the intention of sitting down and writing about his life one day.