This play is filled with symbolism especially when concerning the staircase, which is the focal point of the play. Everything takes place around it and it shows how the protagonists will never leave that building or get away from that staircase that only leads down.

This is an excellent play of people eventually taking control of their lives after generations of drift. It is available as an English translation? Russell C. Bingley

IS THERE A SPANISH LITERATURE TEACHER OUT THERE WITH ANY INFORMATION / I.E. VOCAB LISTS, QUIZZES, TESTS ON THIS WORK?

THANK YOU SUMRELR@AOL.COM SPANISH II, III, IV AND V AT WESTERN GUILFORD HS, GREENSBORO, NC

I'm reading this play (in Spanish) in my Pre-AP Spanish class. It's really quite moving, and I think that it's easy to read as long as you've taken at least three years of high school Spanish or Spanish is your first language. Unfortunately, I don't know how good the translation is, but the original is extremely powerful. I'd definitely recommend the play for older readers.

i am an actor grom HK, i had acted this play, "in the buring darkness" is a very good play, it can train actor. although, we translated it into chinese, we also keep its own poetic writing. if you read, you will find a lot of excitment....

My contempory Spanish lit class at Vanderbilt read this play, and I thought it was a truly masterful piece of work. Aside from the contemporary political themes touched upon, this play also serves as a marvelously crafted religious alegory; Ignatius serves as a strong Christ-figure, and is just as persistent in his mission to point out the foly and blindness of others who will not accept it. En la ardiente oscuridad" adresses a universal theme, our "sentimiento tragico de la vida," to use Unamuno's phrase. This play is for anyone who is tempted to deny his or her own blindness; it is also for anyone who struggles daily with the conflict between comfort and truth; it is also for those who love the teachings of Christand his quest to reveal spiritual blindness wherever he found it. Read this play.

To begin with, I should say that I am a nonprofessional stage actor, and I've just finished appearing in an 8-performance run of this play Off-Broadway in Manhattan. Mr. Holt, the translator, was in attendance throughout, this having been the play's American premiere.

The story is a speculation on the life of Diego Velazquez, a major figure in art history. Buero Vallejo's plot makes use of what little is known about the man to suggest the possible repercussions of his unorthodox work for King Philip IV's court. Petty individuals conspire to condemn a man whose vision and unwillingness to compromise are interpreted as disloyalty to the Crown. There are similarities to "A Man for All Seasons" and "Beckett" in the ensuing conflict between loyalty and integrity.

The second time I read through the play, its emotional climax (in which the painter Velazquez eloquently defends himself to the Inquisition) brought me to tears. During our production's rehearsals, I was fortunate enough to be asked to fill in for absent actors, so although my actual role was a supporting character (a beggar who is telling this story to the audience), I had the pleasure of reading the lead (Velazquez) as well.

The story is not a happy one; the titular painting (an informal portrait of one of the king's daughters and her servants) is described as "a calm painting; but with all of Spain's sadness within it." Velazquez himself describes his people as "sad hypocrites." The author, who wrote this play in 1960, had a few things to say about social injustice, and his nontraditional use of one of Spain's major historical personalities was not universally well-received at the time.

The translation is somewhat formal; there are remnants of what I imagine are formalities from the original Spanish. I didn't consider this a problem; the story takes place in the 17th century, and there should be differences from modern colloquial speech. Unfortunately, the plot somewhat soft-pedals the Spanish Inquisition itself; there is perhaps not enough reference made to the frightening excesses that were committed in the name of religion. One wonders if Spaniards have as much trouble dealing with the Inquisition as elder Germans have had acknowledging the Holocaust.

I would recommend this play to anyone who is looking for a story that is more than just light entertainment, and who doesn't mind reading a playscript as opposed to prose. It was certainly a joy to perform.