List of Lope de Vega's plays in English translation

Lope de Vega was a Spanish Golden Age poet and playwright. One of the most prolific writers in history, he was said to have written 2,200 plays (an average of nearly one per week for his entire adult life), though fewer than 400 survive today.[1] In addition, he produced volumes of short and epic poems as well as prose works. For this fecundity, Cervantes nicknamed him the "Monster of Nature".[1] His example crystalized the style of Spanish comedias for generations.

For a related list, see List of Calderón's plays in English translation.
Lope de Vega
Thomas Holcroft
Lope, Spanish Golden Age playwright and "Monster of Nature"; and Holcroft, his earliest English translator.

Over 50 English translations of Lope's plays have been published, all but three of them after 1900. As multiple translations of several plays have been made, this covers only about two dozen Spanish originals. By far, the most frequently translated play is Fuente Ovejuna (The Sheep Well), followed by The Dog in the Manger, The Knight of Olmedo, The Silly Lady, Peribáñez and the Comendador of Ocaña, and Capulets and Montagues.

Translations

Key
  • Spanish Title — The original comedia or auto that serves as the basis of the English text.
  • English Title — The title of the English text, as it appears in the particular translation. Because one Spanish title may suggest alternate English titles (e.g. Fuente Ovejuna, The Sheep Well, All Citizens are Soldiers), sorting by this column is not a reliable way to group all translations of a particular original together; to do so, sort on Spanish Title.
  • Year — The year of the translation's first publication. Some translations may have been written or produced earlier than this date, and some were republished subsequently, but this is not noted here.
  • Publication — The publication in which the translation first appeared. When the publication consisted only of the single named play this information is not repeated, except in cases where the publication title is used as an external link to the work, or when it is matched with an ISBN.
  • Notes — May indicate the style of translation or significant republications; all works are 3-act comedias unless noted.

Table
Spanish Title English Title Year Translator Publication Notes
Castalvines y Monteses Romeo and Juliet. A Comedy 1770 Anonymous OCLC 836729121 "A perversion of Lope's play"[2]
El padre engañado The Father Outwitted 1805 Holcroft, Thomas? The Theatrical Recorder, Vol. II, No. 7. prose; 1-act interlude; reprinted in 1811 as The Father Outwitted at Google Books
Castalvines y Monteses Castalvines y Monteses 1869 Cosens, F. W. Castalvines y Monteses at the Internet Archive blank verse
The Punishment of the Flirtatious Wife 19?? Chambers, Jane OCLC 20927441 prose
El Perro del hortelano The Dog in the Manger 1903 Chambers, W. H. H. In Alfred Bates: The Drama Volume VI: Spanish and Portuguese Drama at Google Books prose
El mayor Alcalde el Rey The King the Greatest Alcalde 1918 Underhill, John Garrett Poet Lore (1918) prose & verse; reprinted in World Drama, ed. Barrett H. Clark (1933) at the Internet Archive and Four Plays by Lope de Vega at the Internet Archive
Lo Cierto por lo dudoso A Certainty for a Doubt 1936 Underhill, John Garrett Four Plays by Lope de Vega at the Internet Archive prose & verse
El Perro del hortelano The Gardener's Dog 1936 Underhill, John Garrett Four Plays by Lope de Vega at the Internet Archive prose & verse
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna (The Sheep Well) 1936 Underhill, John Garrett Four Plays by Lope de Vega at the Internet Archive prose & verse
Peribáñez y el Comendador de Ocaña Peribanez 1937 Price, Eva Rebecca OCLC 551323573
El nuevo mundo descubierto por Cristóbal Colón The discovery of the New World by Christopher Columbus 1950 Fligelman, Frieda OCLC 1131227626 prose
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1959 Campbell, Roy Eric Bentley, ed (1959): The Classic Theatre III: Six Spanish Plays at the Internet Archive blank verse; reprinted in Eric Bentley, ed (1985): Life Is A Dream and Other Spanish Classics at the Internet Archive
Peribáñez y el Comendador de Ocaña Peribáñez 1961 Booty, Jill Lope de Vega: Five Plays at the Internet Archive prose
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1961 Booty, Jill Lope de Vega: Five Plays at the Internet Archive prose
El Perro del hortelano The Dog in the Manger 1961 Booty, Jill Lope de Vega: Five Plays at the Internet Archive prose
El caballero de Olmedo The Knight from Olmedo 1961 Booty, Jill Lope de Vega: Five Plays at the Internet Archive prose
El castigo sin venganza Justice Without Revenge 1961 Booty, Jill Lope de Vega: Five Plays at the Internet Archive prose
La dama boba The Stupid Lady 1962 Jones, Willis Knapp OCLC 6906774
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1962 Flores, Angel & Kittel, Muriel Masterpieces of the Spanish Golden Age at the Internet Archive prose & verse; reprinted in Great Spanish Plays in English Translation (1991) ISBN 0-486-26898-5
Peribáñez y el Comendador de Ocaña Peribáñez and the Comendador of Ocaña 1964 Starkie, Walter Eight Spanish Plays of the Golden Age at the Internet Archive prose & verse
La Fianza Satisfecha A Bond Honored 1966 Osborne, John A Bond Honoured: A Play (from Lope De Vega) reprinted in Lope de Vega: Plays Two ISBN 978-1840021806
Auto sacramental de la circuncisión y sangría de Cristo nuestro bien For our sake 1969 Barnes, R[ichard] G. In Three Spanish sacramental plays: For our sake OCLC 655189012 1-act religious play
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1969 Colford, William E. OCLC 640113345
Fuente Ovejuna All Citizens are Soldiers 1969 Fainlight, Ruth & Sillitoe, Alan ISBN 9780802312303
El caballero de Olmedo The Knight of Olmedo 1972 King, Willard F. ISBN 0803205007
La dama boba The Lady Simpleton 1976 Oppenheimer, Max ISBN 0872910784
El mayordomo de la duquesa de Amalfi The Duchess of Amalfi's Steward 1985 Rodriguez-Badendyck, Cynthia The Duchess of Amalfi's Steward at the Internet Archive ISBN 0919473539
Lo fingido verdadero Acting is Believing 1986 McGaha, Michael Acting is Believing : A Tragicomedy in Three Acts at the Internet Archive ISBN 0939980142
El anzuelo de Fenisa Fenisa's Hook, or, Fenisa the Hooker 1988 Gitlitz, David M. ISBN 0939980193
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1989 Mitchell, Adrian In Two Plays ISBN 0948230231
El castigo sin venganza Lost in a Mirror (It Serves Them Right) 1989 Mitchell, Adrian In Two Plays ISBN 0948230231
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1989 Dixon, Victor Fuente Ovejuna at the Internet Archive ISBN 978-0856683282
Peribáñez y el Comendador de Ocaña Peribáñez and the Comendador of Ocaña 1990 Lloyd, James ISBN 978-0856684395
El Perro del hortelano The Dog in the Manger 1990 Dixon, Victor ISBN 0919473741
Lo fingido verdadero The Great Pretenders 1992 Johnston, David Two Plays ISBN 0948230568
El caballero de Olmedo The Gentleman from Olmedo 1992 Johnston, David Two Plays ISBN 0948230568
Los locos de Valencia Madness in Valencia 1998 Johnston, David ISBN 0948230665
La dama boba Lady Nitwit 1998 Oliver, William I. Lady Nitwit at the Internet Archive ISBN 0927534746
Castalvines y Monteses Castelvins and Monteses 1998 Rodriguez-Badendyck, Cynthia ISBN 9781895537390
Los trabajos de Jacob The Trials of Jacob; or, Sometimes Dreams Come True 1998 McGaha, Michael The Story of Joseph in Spanish Golden Age Drama at the Internet Archive ISBN 978-0838753804 prose & verse
Castelvins y Monteses Castelvins and Monteses 1998 Rodriguez-Badendyck, Cynthia Carleton Renaissance Plays in Translation, 30 ISBN 978-1895537390
Fuente Ovejuna Fuente Ovejuna 1999 Edwards, Gwynne Lope de Vega: Three Major Plays ISBN 978-0-19-954017-4 blank octosyllables
El caballero de Olmedo The Knight from Olmedo 1999 Edwards, Gwynne Lope de Vega: Three Major Plays ISBN 978-0-19-954017-4 blank octosyllables
El castigo sin venganza Punishment Without Revenge 1999 Edwards, Gwynne Lope de Vega: Three Major Plays ISBN 978-0-19-954017-4 blank octosyllables
El mejor mozo de España The Best Boy in Spain 1999 Gitlitz, David M. The Best Boy in Spain at the Internet Archive ISBN 9780927534857
La dama boba Wit's End 2000 Friedman, Edward H. Wit's End; an adaptation of Lope de Vega's La dama boba ISBN 0820445320
El Niño Inocente de la Guardia The Innocent Child 2001 Jacobs, Michael Lope de Vega: Plays One ISBN 978-1840021448
Las paces de los reyes y judía de Toledo(?) The Jewess of Toledo 2001 Jacobs, Michael Lope de Vega: Plays One ISBN 978-1840021448
The Labyrinth of Desire 2001 Jacobs, Michael Lope de Vega: Plays Two ISBN 978-1840021806
El nuevo mundo descubierto por Cristóbal Colón The New World Discovered by Christopher Columbus 2001 Shannon, Robert M. ISBN 978-0820448848
Fuente Ovejuna Fuenteovejuna 2002 Applebaum, Stanley Fuenteovejuna at the Internet Archive ISBN 978-0486420929 linear prose translation, with Spanish text
El Perro del hortelano The Dog in the Manger 2004 Johnston, David ISBN 978-1-84002-435-7
El mayordomo de la duquesa de Amalfi The Duchess of Amalfi's Steward 2005 Edwards, Gwynne Three Spanish Golden Age Plays ISBN 0-413-77475-9 blank octosyllables
Castalvines y Monteses The Capulets and Montagues 2005 Edwards, Gwynne Three Spanish Golden Age Plays ISBN 0-413-77475-9 blank octosyllables
Fuente Ovejuna Fuenteovejuna 2018 Racz, Gregary J. The Golden Age of Spanish Drama ISBN 978-0393923629 verse
El Perro del hortelano The Dog in the Manger 2018 Racz, Gregary J. The Golden Age of Spanish Drama ISBN 978-0393923629 verse
Lo fingido verdadero The Actor and the Emperor or, Make-believe Come True 2020 Matthews, Dakin UCLA: The Comedia In Translation And Performance ISBN 978-1588713438 verse

The Star of Seville, previously attributed to Lope but no longer judged to be by him, is not included in this list. English translations include those by Philip M. Hayden (1916) in The Chief European Dramatists at the Internet Archive, Sir Henry Thomas (1935) OCLC 776602053, Elizabeth C. Hullihen (1955) OCLC 1154527390, and Steven Strange (1998) ISBN 9780962877629. Fanny Kemble's five-act 1837 adaptation at the Internet Archive is based on an earlier précis by Lord Holland.[2]

La Dorotea, a genre-bending closet drama or novel in prose dialogue with interspersed poems, is also not included. It was translated by Alan S. Trueblood and Edwin Honig (1985) ISBN 0-674-50590-5.

Notes
  1. Edwards 1999, p. x.
  2. Matthews 1914, p. 19.

References
  • Lope de Vega: Three major plays. Translated by Edwards, Gwynne. Oxford. 1999. ISBN 978-0-19-954017-4.
  • Matthews, Brander (1914). Introduction. The New Art of Writing Plays. By Vega, Lope de. Translated by Brewster, William T. New York: Dramatic Museum of Columbia University.
  • Pane, Remigio Ugo (1944), English translations from the Spanish, 1484-1943, New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press
  • "Translations - Lope de Vega". Comedia in Translation. Retrieved 2020-08-19.
Online bibliography
Additional translated texts available online
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