This melodramatic fantasy La dama del alba ("The Lady of the Dawn" in English) is a Spanish play, very popular in its own country, written by playwright Alejandro Casona in 1944. It is a fantasy-drama in which Death personified is the main character. It takes place in a small village in the Spanish Principality of Asturias. The play consists of four acts. The Narces family is introduced in first act .It is revealed that the mother mysteriously lost a daughter, Angelica, to the large river in their town four years ago. Angelica was married to a young man named Martin (Daniel Martin) three days before her apparent death. Her body was never found, and thus no proper burial was performed. The memory of her death still dwells in the minds of her family. The play starts on the anniversary of her death. A Pilgrim (Yelena Samarina) shows up at the door, she is traveling on the Camino de Santiago, or "Way of St. James," as it is translated into English . Tempest over the house of Narcés arose when it was three years since Martín's unfailthful wife, Angélica, mysteriously disappeared in the waters of the river. Despite the bad weather and ignoring the advice of Angélica's mummy (Dolores Del Rio) , Martín leaves the house to go and raise cattle. At that moment a strange pilgrim (Yelena Samarina) arrives in search of shelter. She can only stop for a few minutes because she has to meet on the bridge with Adela (Juliette Villard) , a girl whom Death seeks. Suddenly, the lady becomes fatigued and falls asleep. She tells the children to wake her up before nine, which they fail to do because they go to bed. The Grandfather realizes that La Peregrina or Pilgrim is the personification of death ; he recognizes her from a near-death experience he had years before in the mine accident which killed all the children, total of seven, of the family servant, Telva (Ana Maria Noe) . Martin brings back the woman by the name Adela who had attempted suicide in the river .
A melodramatic fantasy with suspense with brief elements of terror , emotion , a love story , rural habits with " Noche de San Juan" or Saint Joan Night , twists and turns . Great natural backgrounds make it an attractive and enjoyable experience .It shows several facets of the idiosyncrasy of the Spanish people such as their social habits and rural customs .There has a thoughtful message , as love and respect for those that left us long time ago and the sacrifice that must be undertaken in order to preserve their records. Main Cast gives superb acting such as Daniel Martin as the bitter husband , Juliette Villard as the gorgeous woman whom death seeks and Dolores del Rio as the grieved mother suffering for her disappeared daughter . Support cats is pretty good such as Fernando Cebrian , Ana Maria Noe , Bernabe Barta Barry and Yelena Samarina . Dama del Alba has been filmed at least four times: in 1950 and 1966 for movie theatres, and three times for television, perhaps even more. There has also been a made-for-TV French version. The 1950 Mexican rendition was directed by Emilio Gomez Muriel with Marga Lopez , Emilio Tuero , Andres Soler . The play is little-known in English-speaking countries, and has never been filmed in English.The play has been adapted into an opera by Slovak composer Bartolome Urbanec.
Mostly filmed by cameraman Pierre Montazel in atmospheric scenarios on location in Lerida mountains , with some great locations . Sad musical score by Federico Martinez Tudo, including J.S. Bach , Gluck and popular themes as well as eerie chants . The motion picture was compellingly written , produced , directed by Francisco Rovira Veleta , and being well paced . It was contemptuously deemed and unjustly forgotten , but nowadays, being well valued . He managed to make a fluid and filled with evocative setting , appropriate cinematography and mysterious atmosphere . A movie without concessions , there is nothing forgotten by screenwriters and filmmaker . Veleta was a splendid director and writer , especially known for Los Tarantos (1963), El Amor Brujo (1967) and Los Atracadores (1962). At his beginnings Rovira collaborated with the powerful production company CIFESA as assistant director to Luis Lucía and Juan Orduña . His film debut was ¨Doce Horas De Vida¨(1948) , and went on ¨39 Cartas Amor¨ and ¨Luna De Sangre¨ based on Fernan Caballero novel . His best movies were the prestigious neo-realist trilogy formed by ¨Hay Un Camino a La Derecha¨, ¨Expreso Andalucia¨ about the famous train robbery and this ¨Los Atracadores¨ (61) . His greatest successes were ¨Tarantos¨(1963) about Alfredo Mañas story and ¨Amor Brujo¨ based on Manuel De Falla music , both of them had nomination to American Academy Award . Subsequently , he directed some flops as ¨La Dama De Alba¨ about Alejandro Casona , ¨La Larga Agonía De Peces Fuera de Agua¨ realized in ¨Escuela Barcelona¨ style and ¨No Encontré Rosas Para Mi Madre¨ . Later on , Francisco made the historical production ¨La Espada Negra¨ (76) about R.R.C.C. and his last one was a Noir Film titled ¨Crónica Sentimental En Rojo¨ .
