Las majas del bergantin

Marcos Mundstock: The zarzuela "The Majas of the Brigantine" tells the story of the sailors of a ship of the Spanish crown that transports a group of female prisoners to be judged in Cádiz. It describes the relationship of the sailors with the outlaws while the brigantine is besieged by the pirate ship of Raúl, whose band the prisoners belong to. This zarzuela is based on the novel "Lejanías" by Jorge Esteban Pérez Ríos, and the adaptation was not easy since the original novel is about a woodcutter who lived with his parrot in the forests of Bulgaria. It wasn't easy. The only character that has remained is the parrot. The authors of "The Majas of the Brigantine", Rafael Gómez y Sampayo and Ataúlfo Vega y Favret, both responsible for several successful zarzuelas, after agreeing on the general guidelines that both the music and the lyrics should follow, worked intensively for three months. When they met again, they discovered with some displeasure that they had both written the lyrics. It was then that they decided to incorporate a musician into the team. They turned to the composer and renowned guitarist Ramón Véliz García y Casal, whom they called "The Cervantes of the Guitar" (because he was one-armed). We will now hear, and to conclude this recital, the second act of "The Majas of the Brigantine", a zarzuela by Pérez Ríos, Gómez y Sampayo, Vega y Favret, and Véliz García y Casal. The sailors sing proudly of their ship that gallantly defies the fury of the winds

(They all stand up in a row in front of the stage, with their hands on their belts, jackets open, and legs apart. Behind them sits Carlos Núñez Cortés at the piano)

Everyone
The wind blows, the wind blows
Like never before it blew
And our brigantine
Proudly advances and fast, fast

And sailing the waters
Defying the wind it goes
Resisting so gallantly
So gallant, stubborn and tenacious, and tenacious, and tenacious

That is the pure truth, truth
The truth, truth, the truth

Next to the wind, next to the wind
Already our voice is heard
Exclaiming bravely
Oh, what dizziness! What dizziness!
Oh, what dizziness! What terrible dizziness!
And olé!

(While they sing the song, they sway synchronously simulating the movement of the ship, but when they reach the last stanza, they lose synchronization and start bumping into each other and leaning on each other to avoid falling)

Carlos López Puccio: Goodness, how this contraption moves! I'll lower the sails. Boatswain!
Marcos Mundstock: Go! Go! Go! Go!

(Marcos tries to approach Puccio, but the movement of the ship prevents him. In the end, he thinks and positions himself strategically so that the next shake of the ship will take him to the captain)

Carlos López Puccio: Foresails rolled up, rigging hauled up and ropes to the bitts. Haul away!
Marcos Mundstock: And... For dessert?
Carlos López Puccio: Anyway, magnificent crew
Everyone: Thank you, thank you
Carlos López Puccio: And beautiful brigantine
Jorge Maronna: Thank you, thank
Carlos López Puccio: And speaking of brigantine, have you noticed how many ship names start with a long "b"?
Carlos Núñez Cortés: Ship
Jorge Maronna: Vessel
Marcos Mundstock: Boat
Carlos Núñez Cortés: Vessel
Jorge Maronna: Schooner
Marcos Mundstock: Raft
Daniel Rabinovich: Sailboat!
Marcos Mundstock: Frigate
Carlos López Puccio: Frigate is with "f"!
Marcos Mundstock: It's that the frigate I'm talking about is called Bilbao. Captain, we would like to make a request
Carlos López Puccio: A request?
Marcos Mundstock: Well, no, a petit-tion. You see, regarding the prisoners we have in the hold

(He looks towards Daniel, Carlos Núñez, and Jorge, who, upon hearing the word prisoners, make very expressive gestures)

Marcos Mundstock: ... And considering that we have been at sea for two months and haven't touched port... Or anything... We wanted to ask you to let them come up on deck
Carlos López Puccio: Let the prisoners come up on deck? No way! Those women are common criminals
Marcos Mundstock: Well, we don't expect them to be special
Carlos López Puccio: I mean they are outlaws... They are from the pirate Raúl's gang, and as soon as we arrive in Cádiz, I must hand them over to be judged. Yes, I must hand them over... Intact
Marcos Mundstock: But captain, who will be paying attention... To the degree of "intactness"?
Carlos López Puccio: Integrity!
Marcos Mundstock: Even less!
Carlos López Puccio: Man, what a shame! Look, think about Spain's past
(Upon hearing the word Spain, Marcos stands up straight and firm)
Carlos López Puccio: If those women were to come up on deck, they would relax the morale of the crew
Marcos Mundstock: Man, and how good it would be for us
Carlos López Puccio: I said no, and no, and no! If those women were to come up on deck, they would start with the glances, the giggles, the revelry... The fandango... The drunkenness... The touching... Let them come up!
Daniel Rabinovich: There go the prisoners up!
Marcos Mundstock: Oh, how hairy they are!
(Upon the others' gaze, Marcos explains himself)
Marcos Mundstock: How beautiful their eyes are!
Jorge Maronna: Let's hear what they say!
Marcos Mundstock: They are starting to sing!
(Carlos Núñez Cortés's piano sounds again. The other four start singing. From the right side of the stage, they sing with the rough and manly voice of the sailors, while from the left side, they sing with a feminine voice. Between phrases, they change sides walking quickly and very seriously without losing composure)

Everyone
Hello sailors, tell us what you do
For whom you fight and for whom you sail

Everyone serves our King
And the flag of our "Country"

You are so kind and so gallant
That we would like you to love us

(As they all head to the right side, Daniel stays behind making very feminine gestures. When he realizes he's left alone, he quickly returns to his place to continue)

Everyone
Grateful, but it's just that before
It would be very useful if you "knew us"

(Marcos and Jorge go to the "feminine" side, Daniel stays in the "masculine" side, and Carlos López stays in the middle making the necessary introductions)

Carlos López Puccio: This is Francisco, "The Stamped"

Everyone
How wonderful his tattooed body
Anchors, mermaids, seagulls, eels!
He has tattoos everywhere
He has tattoos even in his armpits

Daniel Rabinovich
See tattooed on my belly
The European continent
And... I won't show you Italy
Because it would look ugly

(Once again, Carlos stays in the middle, and Marcos takes Daniel's place on the "masculine" side)

Carlos López Puccio: This is Anibal, "The Unsatisfied"

Everyone
There is resentment and spite in his eyes
His rough image provokes fear
A man without a doubt... With hair on his chest
What is said, a hairy beast!

Marcos Mundstock
My fury has a reason
I can't resist the sea anymore
Oh, because I would like to be
Either a dancer or a fashion designer

(Puccio introduces the remaining two. As Carlos Núñez is playing the piano, Jorge Maronna stands next to him)

Carlos López Puccio: And these are the twins Reynoso: Julio and Agosto

Everyone
How is it explained
That being twins
Their faces don't resemble
Their looks

Jorge Maronna: I am thin
Carlos Núñez Cortés: I am chubby
Both: We are twins from different mothers

Everyone: Come with us twins!
Both: With pleasure, ladies!
Everyone: And what about the rest?
Everyone: You too
Everyone: It's a pleasure!
Everyone: Don't delay
Everyone: At your service!
Everyone: Cool!
Everyone: Majas!
Everyone: Handsome!
Carlos Núñez Cortés: Captain!

(The ending has been a bit disorderly, with everyone running back and forth on the stage to follow the dialogue between sailors and outlaws. Marcos, smarter than the rest, stays in the middle of the stage looking from side to side while the others run. When Carlos Núñez stops them, they halt and catch their breath)

Carlo Núñez Cortés: Captain!
Carlos López Puccio: What's going on?
Carlos Núñez Cortés: I see a pirate ship to the right!
Carlos López Puccio: It's called starboard
Carlos Núñez Cortés: I see a starboard to the right! Captain, and I see many pirates! There's one of them very corpulent who seems to be the leader. He has a wooden leg and carries a parrot on his shoulder
Carlos López Puccio: A pirate ship... How big is it?
Carlos Núñez Cortés: Rather small... It's like a small parrot
Carlos López Puccio: Not small, length
(Carlos Núñez looks amazed at the captain, then squints to look at the ship in the distance and then at his spyglass wondering what it's for, if the captain can see without it something he himself hasn't managed to see with the spyglass. He even blows through it to see if it's stuck)

Carlos Núñez Cortés: Well, man, I said "parrot" in general
Carlos López Puccio: Look, see if it carries any loot
Carlos Núñez Cortés: Yes, one! On the non-wooden leg!
(Puccio pushes Daniel away desperately while Carlos keeps looking through the spyglass. Suddenly, he sees Puccio through it)

Carlos Núñez Cortés: Captain, you won't believe it... a penguin!
(As he removes the spyglass from his eyes, he realizes that what he was looking at was not a penguin but the captain himself. Trying to fix the mess, he approaches him and strokes his head)

Carlos Núñez Cortés: But beautiful
Daniel Rabinovich: Thunder and lightning!
Carlos López Puccio: What's going on?
Daniel Rabinovich: No, no, I was wrong. In the water, rays and lobsters! And snails
Carlos López Puccio: Yes, there can also be snails
Daniel Rabinovich: No, no, snails are fine, I got the tone wrong; Snails!
Carlos López Puccio: What's going on?
Daniel Rabinovich: A bottle is floating towards the brigantine

Everyone
A bottle, a bottle!
A bottle floating
A bottle, a bottle!
It's floating this way

Daniel Rabinovich: They must have put it there to cool
(Upon hearing Daniel's comment, the captain worriedly pushes him away)

Everyone
A bottle, a bottle!
It's floating this way

Jorge Maronna: It must be a message from the pirates

Everyone
A bottle, a bottle!
It's floating this way

Jorge Maronna: It has a skull and two crossed bones
Daniel Rabinovich: Bones? Confirmed, they put it there to cool
(Puccio pushes Daniel away again and bends down to pick up the bottle and read the message)

Carlos López Puccio: Darn! It's from pirate Raúl!
Daniel Rabinovich: And what does it say?
Carlos López Puccio: It says that if we don't hand over the prisoners... They will sink us
(Upon hearing the message, Daniel starts shaking convulsively)

Daniel Rabinovich: Oh, captain...! I'm so scared, captain!
Carlos López Puccio: Don't tremble like that
Daniel Rabinovich: How scared I am
Carlos López Puccio: Show some dignity!
Daniel Rabinovich: I'm terrified
Carlos López Puccio: Look, think about Spain's past
Daniel Rabinovich: My whole Europe is trembling, from Norway to Italy

(Carlos Núñez, who has been thinking during the dialogue, suddenly comes up with something)

Carlos Núñez Cortés: I have an idea, captain! What if we go disguised as prisoners? And once on board... Bam! We attack them!
Carlos López Puccio: No, no, no, no. Imagine what they would do to us if they realized we're not women
(Carlos Núñez reflects and agrees, indicating by gestures that they would cut off their heads, but Daniel intervenes)

Daniel Rabinovich: Worse what they would do if they didn't realize
(Jorge Maronna in the background makes a gesture of pain, but at that moment Marcos approaches him and gestures that he wouldn't mind, that if he has a problem, it's his own thing. For something they call him "The Unsatisfied"... The others, scared, take a few steps back while Carlos Núñez continues to think of a solution)

Carlos Núñez Cortés: Alright, captain! Then, let's go disguised... As men
Carlos López Puccio: Well, there's nothing to be done
Daniel Rabinovich: What do you mean there's nothing to be done?
Carlos López Puccio: We must hand over the prisoners
Daniel Rabinovich: No!
Carlos Núñez Cortés: No, definitely not!
Marcos Mundstock: Let's resist! Let's resist!
Carlos López Puccio: No! I wouldn't know how to offer resistance, so we must hand them over
Daniel Rabinovich: It's useless
Marcos Mundstock: Yes, but... He's the captain
Carlos López Puccio: Go on, get out! Take the skiff! Go with pirate Raúl!

(Carlos Núñez sits back at the piano and plays a sad melody while the others sigh in pain and impotence to the rhythm of the melody. Daniel cleans Jorge Maronna's shoulder with his hand twice in a row, and when he sees that he has stained it, Daniel puts his head on his shoulder to cry. Jorge compassionately strokes his head for a second and removes his hand, but Daniel puts it back on his face)

Daniel Rabinovich: More!
Carlos López Puccio: Boatswain, we set sail. Spread the sails
Marcos Mundstock: I don't advise it, sir! There's wind
Carlos López Puccio: And... That's why, spread the sails
Marcos Mundstock: Ah, spread the sails! I had understood that you meant to "light" the sails

Daniel Rabinovich
Oh! The majas have gone
And with them our love

(Daniel sings with a heavy-hearted gesture and a sad voice, although when he says "love," he puts his hands on the right side of his chest. However, he quickly realizes his mistake and moves them to the left side, causing the audience to laugh)

Everyone
We are left with oblivion
Oblivion with liquor
Since the majas have gone
And with them our love
We only have to forget them
We only have... To forget them
We only have... To forget them!

Daniel Rabinovich: Boo hoo hoo!
Carlos López Puccio: Alright, don't cry anymore! Look, think about Spain's past
Daniel Rabinovich: I'm not crying for Spain's past, I'm crying for Italy's future!

Everyone: Forget them with liquor