On Friday, Dec. 2, the USC arts community celebrated the life and writing of Federico García Lorca, 80 years after he was killed in 1936. A company of School of Dramatic Arts MFA actors, a Spanish guitarist from the USC International Artist Fellowship and a professor of playwriting joined together to present poetry, drama, lecture and music at the Fisher Museum of Arts.

Directed by Associate Professor of Theatre Practice Stephanie Shroyer and curated by Associate Professor Oliver Mayer, the event was billed as a pachanga, a celebration and party rather than a sit-down presentation. Lorca’s lectures on the duende provided a frame for the passions onstage and the poetry on display. After the official program, members of the audience recited Lorca poems in Spanish and English.

The event was produced by the School of Dramatic Arts, the departments of Spanish, Portuguese and Gender Studies, and the Fisher Museum of Arts.