Designing the costumes, backdrops, props... at final, all the elements involved in staging a play. This has been the goal that 41 students of the Degree in designof the University of Navarra have worked on, and which will be embodied in the work La Zarzuela de los Paraguasproduced by the Museo Universidad de Navarra, whose premiere will take place on 5 and 6 April.

The goal has been "to give students a basis for the understanding of Scenography as a creativetool in itself and not as a mere tool "representation" of another's idea. The interesting thing about a set design is the way in which other programmatic ideas are materialised, enriched and made visible, which are understandable and recognisable to the public thanks to the set designer's choices of design ", explains Juan Roquette, professor of the School of Architecture.

In this way, the pupils carried out a preliminary work on research, in which they analysed the text of the play, as well as the different stagings it has had over time. Specifically, "they analysed backdrops, costume characterisations and deictics of other authors, to see how the same ideas can be expressed in different ways: either in more abstract/symbolic keys, or in more text-centric or figurative keys", the teacher points out. The students also received practical sessions on the stage of the theatre of the University of Navarra Museum, "where they were able to test and exemplify the virtualities of the stage designer's tools: their own body, positions in space, movement, lighting, body and facial expression, perspective, etc.", he adds.

"The approach of our project was based on the concept of water and the deluge as an element that paralyses the population of an entire country, thus creating a simile with the idea of a flooded city, collapsed between pipes, stagnant water and sewage. To materialise this concept, we divided the scenes into historical or past scenes and contemporary ones, using a colour code: sepia and tan; and colourful and cold, respectively. This whole idea was linked in coherence with the design of costumes and backdrops, which were made using the collage method: with images and photographs from archives in Pamplona and Madrid from the time of the play, some references to Ortiz Echagüe and with elements from a magazine from the same year, 1889", explains student Elena Vela.

An project "integrated learning" website

This project is developed with the methodology of "integrated learning", in which students have the opportunity to simultaneously study the subject and apply their practical knowledge to a real case. Moreover, on this occasion, they have been tutored and supervised by Liuba Cid, PhD in Arts and Humanities, member of the Spanish Academy of Performing Arts and creative director of the play. "I believe that the process that the students have followed in this project re-signifies the value of creative culture in the programs of study of Degree, in particular, applied to subject, as tool of innovation professor", says Cid. "The methodological value lies precisely in the research processes that stimulate the development of new technical skills in the students, but also creative ones, all in the framework of the collaborative work ", he adds.

"For me it was a very enriching experience. It opened doors to a new world where I could develop my design and creativity. It is also a great opportunity to begin to develop professionally towards the future, giving me the experience of being part of such an important project ", Elena Vela points out.

La Zarzuela de los Paraguas, which will premiere on 5 and 6 April at the Museo Universidad de Navarra, is a recreation of works by Federico Chueca and Joaquín Valverde, under the musical direction of Borja Quintas and stage direction and dramaturgy of Liuba Cid. It involves the students of the activities included in the programme Talento Artístico de la Universidad de Navarra: the Orquesta Sinfónica de la Universidad de Navarra and the Coro Universidad de Navarra - conducted by Borja Quintas - and the groups of the Plan de training Teatral, in addition to the students of the Programa de Producción de Artes Escénicas under the direction of Liuba Cid; the students of the Degree de design of the School of Architecture Universidad de Navarra and the association Gayarre de Amigos de la Ópera (AGAO).