The Historical Context of Siglo de Oro
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Siglo de Oro Spanish Drama Festival

Since its modest beginning at the Chamizal National Memorial in the spring of 1976, the Siglo de Oro Spanish Drama Festival has attained an international reputation for presenting quality presentations from Spain's Golden Age, in both English and Spanish, by theatrical groups from all over the world.

The Festival celebrates Spain's "Golden Age" in which luminaries such as Lope de Vega, Miguel de Cervantes and Calderón de la Barca left a heritage of classical drama that has enriched the world with its beauty and passion. Over the years, symposia in both El Paso and Ciudad Juárez have provided a rich experience to both scholars and audience members with a vivid comparison and discussion of the original literary form inspired by the modern theatre productions staged at the Festival.

The Chamizal's Student Outreach Program gives hundreds of students every year the opportunity to examine the contemporary world through the relevant eyes of the past and to understand that although material culture may change, people and emotions have remained the same through the centuries. The presentations instill in the students a sincere love of literature and a keen appreciation of their language and traditions.

The Siglo de Oro Drama Festival remains an important cultural manifestation that is directly linked to communication and education, and is an endeavor that contributes genuinely and effectively to our society on both sides of the border. Over the past thirty-one years the Festival has hosted more than 250 productions from fifteen countries, involving more than 150 directors and 3,000 cast members, playing before a combined audience of 125,000.