Carmen Conde in the trail of Corporal Turn. Dance theatricality in her literary and dramatic works

Abstract

The corporeal turn in Western cultures at the end of the 19th century, coupled with the influence of Nietzsche's writings, marked a paradigm shift in philosophy by emphasizing the preeminence of the body and its expressions. This shift also transformed the conception of theatricality and its historical trajectory. Dance, gesture, and movement began to influence literature, shaping its themes and literary aesthetics, and similarly impacted dramaturgy from the early 20th century onward. This article examines the trajectory of Carmen Conde as a case of this corporeal inclination, focusing on her early works, such as the unpublished novel La danzarina rusa. Furthermore, the study explores the presence of "dance writing" in her dramatic production during the Silver Age in Los acordes de la pavana (1925), the Spanish Civil War in Oíd a la vida (1936) and El ser y su sombra (1938), Francoism, and the democratic era, through genres leaning toward total artwork, including auto, ballet, and musical theatre.