In the development of a national German-speaking theater, two foreign playwrights had a predominant role as sources of inspiration and emulation: William Shakespeare and Pedro Calderón de la Barca (1600-81). Their reception began in the seventeenth century and was promoted by itinerant troupes, with Shakespeare’s plays experiencing their heyday during the subsequent Storm-and-Stress movement, whereas Calderon’s pieces had to wait for the German romantics and for Goethe to gather an enthusiastic following. At times Shakespeare was more rapturously endorsed, sometimes Calderón. There is no doubt, however, that the latter remained a potent and viable model for the German-speaking stage throughout the nineteenth and into the early twentieth century. Until today, his plays have had a…
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Citation: Hoffmeister, Gerhart. "Calderon in German Literature". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 03 March 2010 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/stopics.php?rec=true&UID=7215, accessed 23 November 2024.]
