The best theatre to see with a gang (and to give as a gift!) this Christmas

BarcelonaAt Christmas, the theater listings are more packed with good food than the finest cannelloni. Since we have more free time and more opportunities to give gifts during this period, programmers know it's the time to showcase their safest bets, tried-and-tested shows, and offerings for large audiences. Family and nostalgia are two of the key ingredients on the menu. From all the options, we've chosen 10 multidisciplinary shows, suitable for groups or families, intergenerational, and designed to appeal to different tastes.

When they premiered this play at the Grec Festival, after its run in Avinyó, we already asked them to please bring it back, and the Lliure has obliged. If it was lost CliffIt's time to meet Barón de Evel, an extraordinary, unmissable, and utterly original company. What will you see? Visual theater, contemporary circus, performance poetry, 3D visual arts, clowning with ceramics... Theater without labels, which in this work tackles toxic collectives. A pessimistic undertone, but one that doesn't seem so at all when it takes this fascinating form.

Fifteen years ago, Oriol Broggi introduced us to the Cupiello family at Christmas, and let's not kid ourselves, four revivals later they're still stealing our hearts. The tender and comical connection between the family on stage and the families in the audience is undeniable; they identify with the Neapolitan chaos in the midst of the Christmas rush. A comedy of manners, with a touch ofbefore, made with the endearing craftsmanship of La Perla and a group of actors who, paradoxically, They are not headliners But they are all extraordinary.

Cubana celebrates its 45th anniversary by returning to the first theater that gave them indoor space. And they do so with a tribute to amateur theatre, using as an excuse Love came in a taxiRafael Anglada's play, a regular title in amateur theatre. It's time to enjoy the Cubans in its full splendor, from its frenetic rhythm, the clean humor, those tremendous costumes, the painted backdrops, the period songs, and the nostalgic effervescence that the veteran company makes us feel.

If we're talking about theatrical families, we have to mention T de Teatre, who are once again venturing into comedy. Carme Pla, Mamen Duch, Ágata Roca, and Marta Pérez are directed by Nelson Valente in a story about three sisters who can't seem to get along and carry a heavy burden of psychological and emotional problems that explode on stage. Basically, a dysfunctional family like any other, brought together at a family meal. Theater in Argentina, made in our own backyard.

As far as theatrical offerings go, this could be the Christmas show. Uruguayan director Gabriel Calderón (creator of the wonderful Story of a wild boar) returns to Catalan theater with a stellar cast (Pere Arquillué, Laura Conejero, Joan Carreras, and Daniela Brown) to talk about our miserable lives under the guise of artificial intelligence, which has already taken humans' rightful place. A satire on identity, the role of art, fear, and that intangible—and Christmassy—thing...the soul.

While two large-scale musicals in Spanish continue to run, such as The Phantom of the Opera (at the Tivoli) and Tootsie (at Apolo, with Diana Roig and Ivan Labanda), the Condal revisits another classic mid-format Catalan production. A new production premieres Blood brothersWilly Russell's production, directed by Daniel Anglès with two collaborators from the final stage of Dagoll Dagom, choreographer Ariadna Peya and musician Andreu Gallén. Thirty years ago this title was a sensation – do you remember Àngels Gonyalons, Joan Crosas, Roger Pera, Gemma Brió and Sergi Zamora? – and now the story of the brothers separated at birth who end up falling in love with the girl returns with a cast that will surprise nostalgic fans and delight newcomers, including Joc and Tai Fati.

If you're having trouble getting teenagers to go to the theater, this could be a good option. It's a classic teen comedy, without big twists or gimmicks, but it unfolds with a strong sense of truth. Pere Riera explores the passage of time in a village in the Maresme region, through a group of friends we see grow from 15 to 30. It's conventional, realistic, and well-made theater—as evidenced by the fact that this is the third replacement!– with Jordi Boixaderas and Rosa Gàmiz as the cherry on top of the party.

Another recommendation I love: a hot topic, Catalan authorship, and two top-tier actors. Míriam Iscla and Dafnis Balduz star in a face-off between two friends who confront, unsettle, and intimidate each other. A veteran actress refuses to film a nude scene that the director, a younger friend, considers crucial. We enter the intimacy of a crisis. Power dynamics, consent, trust, ethics. If you're a fan of Catalan drama and acting duels, your adventure can continue with three dramedies about relationships: Gothenburg, by Jordi Casanovas, in La Villarroel; Unpaired, of Ramon Pardinain Texas, and The toaster, by Roc Esquius and Sergi Belbel, in Versus.

After a year of Sea and sky Taking over the Teatro Victoria, it's now time for another year of Mago Pop. After a run on Broadway, he spent a year performing in Madrid, and now Antonio Díaz finally returns home. He comes back with his tried-and-tested illusions and new tricks to dazzle new audiences. There's no doubt that Mago Pop works magic, because he manages to fill the theater to capacity every night with this ultra-popular and ultra-complex genre.

Humor is often a good social lubricant. If you believe that laughter can bring families together, Albert Pla and Peyu bring their clowns together in a Hamlet which has nothing Shakespearean about it other than an excuse to talk about life and death, fortune and misfortune. The colleagues on the television program Wise nature They star in a comedy at the theater about two men forced to live together: they have been admitted to the same room, 313. After having premiered the show in Calldetenes and fattening it up for months, it now arrives at the largest theater in Barcelona.