Laila Ripoll replaces Lluís Homar at the head of the National Classical Theater Company | Culture

Starting in January, the playwright, stage director and manager (Madrid, 60 years old) will be the new director of the National Classical Theater Company (CNTC), dependent on the National Institute of Performing Arts and Music (Inaem), an organization autonomous from the Ministry of Culture. As a manager, Ripoll has been director of the Teatro Fernán Gómez-Centro Cultural de la Villa de Madrid between 2019 and 2023, and is the director and founding partner of Teatro Micomicón, with more than 30 years of experience specializing in classical Spanish theater and open for 25 to own texts. In 2015 he won for his work The blue triangle. He replaces after the controversy over irregular remuneration, which led to Homar’s agreed departure on December 31.

after he acknowledged that he had charged a total of 50,000 euros for artistic direction work that he had not carried out in three CNTC productions released in 2021. In reality, these were payments for work as an actor in two other productions. The reason for this irregular payment was that, administratively, he could not be paid as an interpreter while he was in charge of the company. According to the contract, he could only be paid for management work, with an annual limit of 50,000 euros, which would be added to the 79,586 euros as a fixed salary. Ripoll has announced that it will limit its possible stage directions to a maximum of one production per season, and not before 2026.

Ripoll’s appointment, announced this Monday by the general direction of Inaem, is for five years, extendable for another three at most. The selection process has taken into account the principles of equality, merit and capacity, as well as those of publicity and competition. His project has been unanimously imposed among the 19 proposals presented.

The Ripoll project

Ripoll’s proposal “not only as a great reference for the golden theater, but also as a cultural and artistic center of the first magnitude.” It will opt for contemporaneity, that is, for a current reading of the classics; parity, the defense of effective equality between male and female creators; inclusion, to ensure accessibility for both the public and creators with functional diversity; decentralization, due to the presence of the Company throughout the territory of the State; and internationalization, with the promotion of Spanish in the main festivals in the world.

Regarding programming, Ripoll will promote two or three of its own productions per season (one of them linked to Joven CNTC) and will include at least one unpublished title in the Company’s repertoire. It will also carry out co-productions and collaborations and aspires to showcase the work of prestigious guest companies, both national and foreign.

The repertoire will be open to all types of performing languages, from dance to musical theater, and will promote shows for children. Another proposal includes the development of a specialized pool of actors, made up of performers who have passed through the CNTC and who master the techniques of the repertoire, and is committed to holding regular auditions. In 2025, an open selection process will also be called to form the seventh promotion of the Young CNTC.

Career and recognitions

Laila Ripoll trained at the (RESAD) and studied at the National Classical Theater Company School. He has a degree in Theater Pedagogy and specialized in interior design and set design at the School of Arts. As a director, Ripoll has directed more than 30 productions and has written more than 40 theatrical texts. For CNTC itself he has covered and directed titles such as From the king below, noneby Rojas Zorrilla (2007) and The Jewess of Toledoby Lope (2017), an author whom he also covered in The courtesy of Spain directed by Josep María Mestres (2014).

Among his many recognitions, the tribute he received in the last edition of the Almagro International Classical Theater Festival stands out.; the Fuente de Castalia award (Classics in Alcalá), 2023; the Talía for Best Direction for Tea Rooms (2023), the award from the Association of Stage Directors for Best Direction for Rif, from lice and mustard gas (2022), the Audience Award for Best Show at the Don Quixote Festival in Paris for The blue triangle (2016). This work was also worthy of the (2015) and the Max for best author that same year. Ripoll has also been awarded the Spanish National Radio Critical Eye Award (2002).