Lorca is one of the few indisputably great dramatists of the twentieth century Observer

The Shoemaker’s Wonderful Wife and The Love of Don Perlimplin use an old story of the old man married to the young wife to expose the social attitudes of a traditional Spain bound by rigid concepts of decency, reputation and honour. The Puppet Play deploys the puppets’ uninhibited and passionate emotions as a direct attack on the ‘tedious triviality’ of commercial theatre. The Butterfly’s Evil Spell explores the themes of love and frustration, while When Five Years Pass is a surrealist play with references to the film Un Chien Andalou [The Andalusian Dog] by Lorca’s friend and collaborator, Luis Bunuel.