What if Britney Spears were the star of 'Life is a Dream'

It takes courage to put Calderón and his Segismundo, Lope de Vega and his Laurencia, Britney Spears kidnapped by her father, the American aesthetics of the nineties of the last century, the baroque costumes of the 17th century and the new dramaturgy of the 21st century, the verse that is not used by emerging or established writers of contemporary theatre, feminism, patriarchy... in the same cocktail shaker.

With all this and a few other added elements, a 21st-century verse play has been composed called #Free Britney , which premieres this Wednesday at the 48th edition of the Almagro International Classical Theatre Festival . Considered the most important and influential event of its kind, it is being held in the city of La Mancha until July 27.

The production takes its name from the Free Britney movement , which was launched in 2019 by the press and fans of singer Britney Spears to demand an end to the artist's considered abusive guardianship, granted by court order in 2008 to her father after she suffered a nervous breakdown. Her father controlled everything: albums, tours, media appearances, etc. The documentary Framing Britney Spears reveals details of that guardianship, from which Britney was freed in 2021 thanks to the Free Britney movement and a Los Angeles judge. The production follows the singer in her last year of guardianship and is the basis on which the work is based.

Taking as a model the classics Fuenteovejuna , by Lope de Vega, and La vida es sueño , by Calderón, the author and director Cristina Subirats has mounted a dramaturgy closely linked to the present but also to the Spanish cultural legacy, as well as to the verse structure and the themes of the Golden Age.

“The fact that a world-renowned pop star from the 1990s finds himself in the 21st century under a somewhat suspicious guardianship [a term used to describe this type of guardianship] was the perfect starting point. And the rhythm that characterizes the verse is the ideal language for telling a story whose protagonist is dedicated to music,” explains Subirats.

The author believes that Britney Spears represents a universal character who connects with the protagonist of Fuenteovejuna, Laurencia, who confronts her father after seeing her honor violated, and with that of La Vida es Sueño, Segismundo, the monster locked in a tower by a father fearful of his fate. “Britney represents many silenced and dominated women. She is the media star trampled by the system [ paparazzi, press, canons, demands of the entertainment industry], she is the woman made invisible and annulled by neglectful healthcare structures, she is the bad mother who can't go out to party, the adult trapped in a deficient and patriarchal judicial system,” she points out.

Subirats confesses that she came to create this cocktail by pure chance. “Britney Spears was the soundtrack to my adolescence. I grew up with a critical eye, and my twenties [she's now 34] were marked by feminist demonstrations and readings. Then, in drama school, I fell in love with the classics and specialized in verse, and reading Lope and Calderón, I understood that what happened to Britney seemed more appropriate for a time when women had fewer rights and freedoms. For 13 years, she experienced a violence that resonates with that of many female characters from the Golden Age, and the silence surrounding her is related to the invisibility that millions of female artists have suffered throughout history, as can be seen from all the Golden Age playwrights.”

#Free Britney emerged as a stylistic exercise during the course The Value of the Word in Verse, taught by renowned actress and teacher Karmele Aranburu in 2021. According to Subirats, it was born in response to "a challenge of confronting the molds of classical verse and approaching it from a writing perspective." She then staged the production with Merienda Dramática, a company created by Subirats, Paula Casales, and Saioa Lara, who are also actresses in the production, although they all contribute their different expertise and work together (like the characters in Fuenteovejuna). They are joined on stage by Íñigo Arricibitia and Ángel Villalón.

The fact that the show is being programmed at a classical theater festival demonstrates its versatility, according to the creators: “It is written entirely in verse and draws on its formal structure, but at the same time it is very contemporary, making it viable to be programmed anywhere.”

Also underlying the montage is a critique of patriarchy: “I think there are many possible interpretations involved, but most are rooted in patriarchal inequality. The abuse of power, mental health, childhood media exposure, and objectification are all exacerbated by the fact of being a woman,” says Subirats, who would like #FreeBritney viewers to reflect on how silence continues to perpetuate women's stories and how, therefore, it is necessary to continue shouting them out, problematizing them, or transforming them into art.