Convention and transgression

Emilio Carballido is one of the most prominent, influential, and prolific of contemporary Hispanic playwrights. He has had a greater influence on Mexican theatre than any other dramatist in history, while outside his country he is known as the ambassador of Mexican theatre. The present study traces several specific dramatic forms over several decades and thus provides a solid basis for a comprehensive view of Carballido's dramatic evolution. This study seeks to define and redefine the dramatic forms that he has reshaped to capture the ambiguous, complex, and changing nature of the modern world and human behavior. Carballido's plays are a staple of the theatre scene in Mexico City and are also frequently staged in Europe, the United States, and throughout Latin America. He has written more than thirty full-length plays and more than sixty one-act pieces as well as movie scripts, adaptations, and works for children's theatre. More than fifteen years have passed since the last book appeared on Carballido's theatre, during which he has written a score of new plays.