Barcelona, June 17, 2025 – Massilia, the powerful final installment of a long-running theatrical trilogy exploring the Republican exile following the Spanish Civil War, premieres at the Grec Festival 2025 at Teatre Akadèmia, with performances running from June 18 to July 6, 2025.
Produced by La Jarra Azul, Puça Espectacles, Teatre Akadèmia and Grec Festival Barcelona, with the collaboration of the European Observatory on Memories (EUROM), Massilia concludes a creative cycle that began in 2005 with Los niños de Morelia and continued with Winnipeg, el vaixell de Neruda, premiered at the 2020 edition of Grec. The trilogy revisits the mass exodus of Spanish Republicans who, escaping fascist repression, embarked on ships bound for exile in the Americas.
Coinciding with the 25th anniversary of La Jarra Azul, Massilia offers a moving reflection on one such voyage—to Buenos Aires in 1939. The play takes its name from the ship that carried a group of artists and intellectuals into exile, and it follows their arrival in Argentina as they encounter a fraught political and cultural terrain. Told through the performances of four young actors, the production explores themes of memory, identity, and intergenerational legacy.
One of the most arresting aspects of the play is its critical interrogation of the present: the haunting possibility that descendants of those who once fled fascism may now align with far-right movements in contemporary Argentina. Massilia raises urgent questions about the persistence of exile and the fragility of democratic values in today’s world.
The production is directed by acclaimed Argentine theatre-maker Nelson Valente, founder of Banfield Teatro Ensamble. The script is co-authored by Albert Boronat (1936, Prostitución, Una casa en la montaña) and Maria Donoso, known for her work in community-based theatre initiatives. Their collaboration brings together voices with deep ties to Spain’s memory culture and contemporary dramaturgy.
“This play is not only about what happened in 1939,” says Valente. “It’s about what continues to happen when memory is lost or manipulated. Massilia is a warning—and a tribute.”
Premiere & Ticket Information
Teatre Akadèmia
June 18 – July 6, 2025
Tickets available at teatreakademia.cat
Special Event – July 2, 2025
A post-performance colloquium will take place on Wednesday, July 2, featuring the director, authors, and cast. This session, organized in collaboraiton with rhe EUROM, invites the public to engage in a dialogue on historical memory, exile, and the role of theatre as a space for critical reflection.
Production Team & Artistic Credits
Authors: Albert Boronat, Maria Donoso
Director: Nelson Valente
Cast: Laura María González, Júlia Molins, Martí Salvat, Lluís Marquès
Translation: Rocío Garcia
Set Design: Helena Mateos-Serna
Costume Design: M. del Mar Grañena
Lighting Design: Lluís Serra
Soundscape: Nacho López
Photography: Carles Araguz
Assistant Director: Pau Ferran
Executive Producer: Marina Guarch
Production Director: Óscar García Recuenco
Acknowledgements: Maruxa Ruíz del Árbol, Horacio García, Nuri Madrid, María Antonia Muñoz-Malajovich, Carmen Bernand, and the European Observatory on Memories.
For interviews, press passes, or additional materials, please contact: info@lajarraazul.cat
Clipping
Massilia, by euromemories