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As a precious jewel standing imposing in the heart of Mexico City, the Chapultepec Castle has been a witness and star for some of the most memorable chapters in Mexican history. Once royal quarters and an army academy, this historic site is the only royal castle in Latin America ever inhabited by Royal family members.
The Chapultepec Castle, which was once a silent witness of the conversations and intimate moments between the former Emperor Maximilian of Habsburg and his wife, the Empress Consort of Mexico, Charlotte of Mexico, is today the magnificent setting for the presentation of two spectacular monologues that take us into in a unique way in two fundamental visions of national history in two of the most fantastic proposals to enjoy weekend nights this summer in CDMX.
Carlota bases upon her hand-written letters of which there is knowledge and reliable record. Carlota sent these letters throughout her life and addressed to her husband Maximilian, to her father and brother, both with the name of Leopold, to the Archduchess María Luisa, to Empress Eugenie, and some other friends, and served the prominent playwright Rodrigo González to create this montage.
As director, Rodrigo González emphasizes Carlota’s ambition, which, in his particular point of view, is what leads her to perdition and to that kind of paranoia and neurosis, which becomes more complicated as the years go by due to the lack of knowledge at the time about mental health, she was treated brutally through confinement and other draconian measures like ice water baths.
Carlota is a one-woman show represented by actress Alejandra Chacón, with costumes divinely designed by the renowned Mexican designer Carlo Demichellis. The music is a commission created specifically for this production by the musician and composer Alonso J. Burgos and is performed live on piano and cello.
In her fourth season playing the Empress, actress Alejandra Chacón inspires her performance in the Empress’s excitement upon arriving in a new land full of illusions and hopes. Emotions that today we consider colonialist, at the time, were well-intentioned, only to end up in two tragic destinations and fatal events marked by death and loss of sanity.
Unlike Carlota, whose inspiration comes from the letters of the former Empress and their reliable translation, Imperio is a monologue based on the novel of the same name by Héctor Zagal, created by Rodrigo González in a monologue that reflects the final days’ life of Emperor Maximilian the First of Mexico.
The season takes place every Sunday in June and July at 7:00 p.m. at the Castillo de Chapultepec National History Museum and shares the character debut of actor Antón Araiza, playing the Emperor in an epic opportunity to print a new energy to the character.
As an actor, Araiza reflects on the terror and questioning that Maximilian of Habsburg felt in that cell during the last hours of his life before his execution and the emotions of a little-understood character in the history of Mexico. It also invites the viewer to live a unique experience and awaken curiosity.
Empire reconstructs the final moments of one of the most exciting chapters of the Mexican 19th century, the Second Empire. Without falsely patriotic prejudices and with a genuine interest in the circumstances of those characters marked by tragedy, Imperio immerses us in an enigmatic episode of history and fiction in which Mexicans distrust their ability to govern the country.
The objective of staging EMPIRE, a play about the end of the Emperor’s life, is to take this historical passage to bring the general public closer to history, reading, and theater and reflect on how our decisions transcend our country and make us protagonists of our history.
For this staging, maestro Alonso J. Burgos composed the original music and performed it live, playing the piano that belonged to Don Porfirio Díaz and is part of the Museum’s collection.
Both performances invite the viewer to peer into unknown chapters of history from a privileged historical site and enjoy in a unique way that, with a decade of success, is a must-see summer night attraction.
Carlota performs on Saturdays in June and July 2024 at 8:00 p.m. at the Castillo de Chapultepec and Imperio on Sundays in June and July at 7:00 p.m. You can buy tickets at Ticketmaster and the Castillo de Chapultepec box office. Chapultepec. Commemorate the 160th anniversary of the arrival of the Second Mexican Empire.
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