Sala Cabanyes Mataró

What is Sala Cabanyes?

Sala Cabanyes de Mataró was inaugurated in 1933 with the name “Sala Cabanyes”, in memory of what had been president and determined promoter of the activities of the Catholic Center, the architect from Mataró Emili Cabanyes i Rabassa.

The Pastorets of Mataró, declared Cultural Heritage of the City (1981), have adapted to the particular characteristics of the stage of this theater like a kind of perfect dress, made to measure. Thus they have become a unique and singular show.

Sala Cabanyes received the Cross of Saint George from the Generalitat of Catalonia in 2016 on the occasion of the Centenary of the first performance of Els Pastorets de Mataró. The theater section of the Catholic Center was distinguished for the hundred years of its most popular show and "in recognition of its integrating role and defense of the Catalan language, culture and traditions."

The Sala Cabanyes is a space where cultural activity, which through theater, serves as a platform for social integration and where values such as individual and group work, self-discipline and appreciation for culture are transmitted and shared from generation to generation. The entity currently has more than 525 active members, in addition to many other collaborators. Generation last generation remains in number and quantity, so it is difficult to find any Mataron family that has not been linked to Sala Cabanyes in one way or another.

The capacity and will of the entity to offer stage shows of its own production to the public is such that in the 2012-2013 season it opened a second room, the Espai Saleta, designed for small-format works and author's theater, and which with its name, remembers the first theater space of the Sala Cabanyes Theater Section of the Catholic Center of Mataró.
The annual programming, the training work at various levels (theatrical, musical and technical) and the involvement in local festivities contribute to placing Sala Cabanyes as a reference in the Matarone associative fabric and in the national theater world. For the people of Mataró and for many theater fans throughout the country, a Mataró without the Sala Cabanyes and its Pastorets is unimaginable.

What does Sala Cabanyes do?

Fundamentally amateur theater productions, and especially and very relevantly, Els Pastorets de Mataró.

The Shepherds of Mataró

Since 1916, Els Pastorets de Mataró has been represented. First in the original theater space called La Saleta, located where the theater is now, and from 1933 in the current theater. Thus, this show, a mandatory reference in popular and traditional Catalan culture and the tradition inherent to the cultural life of Mataró, will turn 100 years old next 2016. The current members of Sala Cabanyes are proud to be able to say that our Pastorets de Mataró They are a reference at a theatrical level within Mataronense and Catalan culture, and they are no longer only ours, but are part of the collective Mataronense and Catalan cultural heritage. In recognition of this conviction, in 1981, the first democratic city council of Mataró decided to declare this show Cultural Heritage of the City. The council declared them this way by recognizing their uniqueness, the cultural and traditional values that
They contain the perseverance of several generations of Mataronesians to keep them alive over so many years and above all for the rigor in their execution. Sala Cabanyes represents Els Pastorets de Mataró 10 times each season, coinciding with the Christmas holidays and with an average number of spectators that exceeds 300 per performance.
The Pastorets of Mataró are a massive spectacle with popular participation, which is made possible thanks to the selfless work of more than 300
people who do their bit in different areas. Everything requires special logistics to be able to raise the curtain each season. As for the interpretation, apart from the characters with text, people of all ages come out to the show acting as dough. In some scenes, such as “Casa de Naïm” or “Buscando Posada”, almost a hundred people come together on stage, creating an impressive effect.
The Pastorets of Mataró follow the text written by Ramon Pàmies i Pina in 1891 under the name “The Star of Nazareth” and premiered in 1898 by the Moral and Instructive Center of Gràcia in Barcelona. The original text was accompanied by music composed by Mn. Miquel Ferrer and Ramon.

In Mataró, this music was renewed over the years with the scores written especially by the teachers Felip Vilaró and Enric Torra, which in a very characteristic way, has been performed live since the sixties at each performance by an orchestra made up of 17 musicians.
Another characteristic feature of Els Pastorets de Mataró is that a singular fantasy prologue was added in 1940 to Ramon Pàmies' text “The Star of Nazareth”, which represents what the world was like before the arrival of the Messiah, and which is a compendium. of pagan traditions rooted in our popular culture. Nymphs, Witches and Goblins rule the Earth. This prologue is absent of dialogue and the entire message is conveyed through dance.
Very significantly, Els Pastorets de Sala Cabanyes keep alive the tradition of Catalan scenography from the beginning of the century, with flat paper sets made by highly recognized artists arranged according to the classic form of Telons, Rompiments and Forillos. The thugs Salvador Serra, Salvador Vadó Llovet, the workshops of Valera y Garcia and the Salvador Brothers of Barcelona worked on them, and of course the great set designer Josep Ciudad.

Stable programming

Los Pastorets are the mast of an annual program of between six and eight self-produced productions between September and June, which Sala Cabanyes makes available each season to the city, the region and the country.
Some of these shows, due to their configuration and quality, fall within circuits of Contests, Exhibitions and direct contracts that other entities in the territory call for. Sala Cabanyes' participation in these circuits has resulted in the achievement of numerous amateur theater awards during recent seasons.

Training

The training work carried out by Sala Cabanyes is carried out through the “La Saca” Theater School. Born in 2000, Saca – a name that combines the first two letters of Sala and Cabanyes and, at the same time, refers to one of the most emblematic scenes of Els Pastorets – has been programming a regular course on Saturdays for more than 15 years. in the morning for children between 6 and 15 years old, as well as monographic courses and summer stays. In addition, it also has a Theatrical Reading Classroom aimed at those people who want to get closer to reading aloud and getting closer to acting. However, the training work of Sala Cabanyes has a long history behind it. Thanks to years of constant work and the commitment to new values emerging from the same entity, the Catalan theater world is full of professionals from the Sala Cabanyes. Actors such as Amadeu Casanovas, Joan Pera, Jordi Bosch, Boris Ruiz, Josep Fadó, Pedro Anglas, Pep Plaza, Montse Vellvehí, Jordi Font, Albert Triola, Xevi Ribas, Sara Espígulo, Lourdes Fabrés, Marc Flynn, Clara de Ramón, Nilo Bofill, Núria Serra, Mercè Grané and others, are an example. In technical aspects, it is worth mentioning set designers such as Josep Ciudad and Jordi Ribas.

Citizen participation

The Sala Cabanyes is an entity open to the city, which participates and contributes human and material resources in the festive calendar with traditional Mataronense roots. The entity actively participates in the Three Kings Parade, the Three Tombs, the Carnival, the Burial of the Sardine and Les Santes, the Mataró Festival. The entity also collaborates in cultural events such as the Exhibition of Entities, the International Theater Day and neighborhood festivals such as those on Cristina, Sant Bru and Baixada Massot streets, the Sant Pere més Baix street festival or the Serenade on Sant Ramon.
Regardless of all this, Sala Cabanyes has a very important internal social activity, participated by its associates and sympathizers, often open to the city. As we have said before, La Sala Cabanyes collaborates fluidly and assiduously with other entities such as the Colla Capgrossos de Mataró, Armats de Mataró, Òmnium Cultural, the Association of Nativity Scene Makers, Fomento Mataroní, the EPMA Theater Group, Support Teams or the Spring Choir for Peace, in addition to other unique initiatives.

Territorial impact of the entity

Located in the heart of Mataró, a city with 120,000 inhabitants, it is one of the pillars of the cultural axis of Mataró formed around La Riera, along with the Teatro Monumental, the Fomento Mataroní, the Basilica of Santa María, Can Palauet, the Casa Coll y Regàs, Ca l'Arenas and the Mataró Museum itself.
The Capital of a Region of 424,000 inhabitants is noticeable and we have detected that many people complement their outings to Barcelona with those they do in our country, because they know that they find a high price/quality ratio.
On the other hand, there are many groups from all over Catalonia (from the Ebro to the Leridan Pyrenees or inland regions) that consult us on theatrical aspects and that come to see our Pastorets and that during the season ask us for collaborations in the form of sharing texts, aid of all kinds, exchanges of opinions and criteria, advice...
The constant release of effects, sets, the composition of musical pieces and the ingenuity of tricks and scenographic effects have made our show " Els Pastorets de Mataró " famous and extraordinarily popular in Catalonia. We can affirm, proudly and without false modesty,
that "Els pastorets de Mataró" and Sala Cabanyes have been and are examples of organizational models, of application of rules, of adaptation to different casuistries, which has repercussions on the territory both in terms of the public and the groups of Theater or those who work with popular and traditional culture.
Thus we have been founders and main actors in the creation of the Coordinator of Pastorets of Catalonia, we participate in the Federation of Amateur Theater Groups of Catalonia and in the Federation of Athenaeums.

Photo audits: Josep Maria Augé, Arnau Aragón, Enric Lucena, Marta Peña, Jaume Quílez, Mireia Romagosa and Juan Carlos Verde.