After the success of the musical Blood brothersThe Condal Theatre in Barcelona will host the comedy from March 19th A brilliant idea, by French author Sébastien Castro, starring Lluís Villanueva, Xavi Mira, Anna Azcona and Susanna Garachana (who also adapted the play), and directed by Xavier Ricart. "I'm especially excited to present A brilliant idea!"Because it contains two elements that make it a very interesting proposition. On the one hand, it's a company with professionals who are true experts in the genre and who have proven they have a firm grasp on the audience. On the other hand, this is a text that can already be considered a comedy classic; it has already triumphed in France and now arrives at the Condal stage," says Daniel Anglès, artistic director of the Teatre Condal, where the play will run until April 19. Xavier Ricart echoes Daniel Susanna Garachana's words regarding his adaptation work. He affirms that he didn't make a mistake with the casting and says he is "happy with the effort" they made, and he is grateful that the Teatre Condal allowed them to work in their space from day one. "It's not easy to do comedy; it requires surrounding yourself with a good team." "The comedy's only message is that people can come and enjoy themselves, have a good time, and forget about what's happening outside," Ricart explains.

Blood brothers It originated in the early 1980s as a commissioned play for high school students. Shortly after, author Willy Russell adapted it into a musical that garnered acclaim in the West End, on Broadway, and also in Barcelona, with the 1994 production premiering at the Teatre Condal, directed by Ricard Reguant and co-starring Àngels Gonyalons. From the Condal's audience, Daniel Anglès learned the story of Mrs. Johnstone's twins, separated by their mother's precarious situation. He then joined the cast for the tour and has now taken on the direction of a new and successful version that deliberately distances itself from both the London and Barcelona originals.

When she was thirteen years old, Mariona Castillo saw for the first time Blood brothers From the back rows of the Teatre Condal, it was there that she wanted to dedicate herself to musical theater. "I saw it live three times and on VHS every day for a long time," she confesses. This Friday, she presented it from the stage of the same theater, thirty-one years later, having become one of the most important voices in Catalan musical theater and in character as Mrs. Johnstone, one of the protagonists. "I've had to make a conscious effort not to remember that version that I know by heart, because we've rehearsed from scratch as if it were a new production," she assures. "I don't feel Àngels Gonyalons' shadow looming over me [who played her role], but rather accompanying me and giving me her blessing, as if I knew her."

For the third consecutive year, the theaters of the Focus Group have broken an all-time audience record. Last season, the Goya, Romea, Condal, and La Villarroel theaters garnered 517,000 spectators and €10.9 million in takings. "We have reached an unthinkable milestone. Surpassing half a million spectators and reaching this level of takings marks new records. These are springboard figures that point us toward an even more promising future," stated Daniel Martínez de Obregón, president of the Focus Group, during the season presentation. "The ingredients for success were there, and we have made good use of them to achieve a significant enough consensus regarding the high artistic quality of our production and exhibitions," he added.

"Now, finally, we'll be able to see it in Barcelona," celebrates Leticia Martín, director of the Grec Festival in Barcelona. She's referring to Forever, a masked production directed by Iñaki Rikarte and produced by Kulunka Teatre, the National Drama Center, the Arriaga Theater in Bilbao, and the Victoria Eugenia Theater in San Sebastian. The play, which won the Best Direction and Best Author awards at the 2024 Max Awards, will run for five performances from July 23 to 27 at the Teatre Condal in Barcelona. "We have to seize this opportunity," says Daniel Anglès, the theater's artistic director.

The artistic universe ofArnau Tordera (Tona, 1986) has no limits. The musician and composer was the first to create a musical theater show centered, from beginning to end, around the sardana. "Until now, there have been some experiments incorporating the copla and the tenora, but this is the first dramatic work that uses these elements to convey the entire show," Tordera emphasizes. With this in mind, he conceived Sardana Superstar, which premiered in October at the Fira Mediterrània and is coming to Barcelona's Teatro Condal from July 2 to 6 as part of the Grec Festival.