No Seat Left Empty: 11 plays to catch at the theatre this Saturday

Catalonia is preparing to host the second edition of the Cap Butaca Buida (No Seat Left Empty) theatre campaign on Saturday, March 22.

Over 200 Catalan theaters will offer 80,000 tickets, with the goal of filling all theaters and breaking a new record for the number of spectators at theatres in one day.

There are 145 spaces participating in the event in the province of Barcelona, 21 in Tarragona, 20 in Girona, and 16 across Lleida.

In the first edition of the Cap Butaca Buida campaign, 145 sites and theaters sold 55,583 tickets.

Among the different offerings are comedic works, dramas, musicals, dance shows, and even acrobatics.

There will be shows for the whole family too with plenty of kids' shows, as well as things for those seeking the classics and most well-known plays.

Some of the shows are Grease the Musical or even Catalan classics such as La Passió de Cervera, or the adaptation of the Valencian chivalric romance Tirant Lo Blanc.

Tickets for Cap Butaca Buida can be bought online.

What to watch for Cap Butaca Buida

A Macbeth's Song | Teatre la Biblioteca | English language

London trio The Tiger Lilies and La Perla 29 join forces to explain the tragic story of Macbeth with a concert spectacle. On the stage, there are accordions, ukeleles, unique songs, and three actors to explain a story based on power and war, blame, blood-stained hands, witchcraft, and the memory of many crimes born from ambition.

Tirant Lo Blanc | Teatre de la Llotja de Lleida | Catalan language

Written by Valencian author Joanot Martorell, Tirant Lo Blanc is a chivalric romance written over 500 years ago. The novel is one of the main gallant stories of medieval Catalan literature and the performance on Saturday brings the classic plot to a contemporary setting.

Author Màrius Serra wrote the adaptation with current events, putting the knight Tirant Lo Blanc in a shipwreck off Northern Africa while he tries to return home to Constantinople. The play features live music by Judit Neddermann.

La Passió de Cervera | Gran Teatre de Cervera | Catalan language

La Passió is one of the most famous Catalan plays. Known as the Passion Play or Easter Pageant, it depicts the Passion of Christ, including his trial, suffering, and death. The play has been performed for over 500 years in Cervera, central Catalonia. Even though the context is different, the human essence continues to be the same as seen during the Middle Ages: violence, power corruption, suicide, and sentencing the prisoner to death.

The show also helps to understand several cultural events and many artworks exhibited in museums and churches across Catalonia.

Carmina Burana | LaFACT - Factoria Cultural de Terrassa | No words

The Factoria de Dansa takes spectators to a world with uplifting rhythms with this musical piece by Carl Orff. The ballet of exorbitant emotions talks about universal topics such as love, fate, and human tenderness. 

The one-hour show is open to all family members.

El Substitut | Teatre Auditori Casal Riudomenc de Riudoms | Catalan language

Football coach Pep Guardiola, Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez, TV presenter Bertín Osborne, journalist Albert Om, writer Quim Monzó… All on the same stage. The reality is that it will be Pep Plaza, a comedian and imitator known for portraying sports figures, politicians, and journalists and even replacing someone at private or public events.

Now, he is tired of being the 'replacement' and wants to take his own path and be recognized as a comic and actor. The problem is that he must now explain to all his characters that he will fly solo. It is a monologue that features around 50 different characters, combining humor, satire, and music. 

The Cibels | El Maldà de Barcelona | Catalan language

Spectators will be transported to 1895 when the first recording studio in Europe was built in central Catalonia. Since then, The Cibels Studio, which may have changed the history of the music industry (or not), has survived time and different music genres, innovative techniques, and daily routines.

The small space has been testimony to some of the most unique sound creations. Was it a mosquito that inspired the Titanic's famous songs? Is there a lost Michael Jackson hit? And what about Winston Churchill's speech if the Allies had lost the war? The Cibels uses music to explain the surrealist story of a recording studio.

Dones de Ràdio | La Villarroel in Barcelona | Catalan language

Three different touching stories from three women who face adversity. Rosa, a 50-year-old woman, anchors the city's most-listened radio program, speaking with irony and sarcasm and with a temper. Àgata, around 40 years old, works in the hospital as a nurse and is very discreet and sentimental. Meanwhile, Carol, who is not even 30 years old, has no clear professional path yet but is very direct.

The three of them have nothing in common until, one day, they find an anomaly in their bodies. Their lives will turn upside down with three leading actresses explaining breast cancer with humor.

Lluna Plena | Teatre de Salt | Catalan language

A story of love and redemption, the chance to go back and change your life's path.

A life explained through Japanese haikus, talking about love, death, beauty, family, parents, and children. Lluna Plena (which translates into English as "Full Moon") follows the story of Fujiko and Tetsuo in this 75-minute play. Spectators will be able to speak with the company behind the show at the end of the event.

Nevenka | Auditori Teatre Espai Ter de Torroella de Montgrí | Spanish language

In 2001, for the first time ever in Spain, a woman won a trial for sexual harassment against a politician. Nevenka Fernández made history by winning her legal complaint against the mayor of Ponferrada.

However, while the judge proved her right, she was publicly questioned. The whole case was a turning point showing how society works and the injuries it causes. The play is the image of a society that has changed, but probably not that much.

L'últim soviètic | Teatre Tantarantana | Catalan language

May 18, 1991: Sergei Krikalev was sent to space as an engineer on board the Soyuz TM-12, just 15 days after Spanish singer Sergio Dalma ranked 4th in Eurovision. 

March 25, 1992: Théâtre du Soleil director names Eurodisney as a cultural Chernobyl. On that day, Krikalev returns home on Soyuz TM-13, becoming the last USSR citizen. 'L'últim soviètic' explains the story of how the Soviet cosmonaut, abandoned in space, returned home.

Outsider | Teatre Bartina de Reus | Catalan language

Inspired by folkloric tales and characters, this work of dance-theater combination explores a profound trip where savage events remind the heart that to be free and uncontrollable is the reason to be. 

The show was created between London and Tarragona and highlights the uniqueness of all people, while showing the connection between the individual and the community.