“I don’t miss a couple”

Forty-five years of career and Valentín Paredes has not stopped working. He feels privileged to enjoy his acting profession. The man from Extremadura returns to the theater with ‘La comedia sin título’, where the last days of Federico García Lorca are narrated, taking advantage of the 125 years of the poet’s birth. A play that begins on July 7 at the Teatro Campoamor in Oviedo and will roll the entire Spanish geography. And in which Valentine He shares the bill with Javier Gurruchaga or Bárbara Caffarel. It is not the only project of Paredes, which The life of Saint Gemma, ‘Gemma Galgani’, begins to shoot.

Your new play is ‘The Untitled Comedy’.

It is one of the shows that Lorca did not finish, and from that text the last days of Lorca before shooting him have been documented and versioned.

Is it fiction?

No, all the characters are real. My character, José Luis Trescastros, appeared at Casa de los Rosales, where Lorca was in Madrid, before fleeing to Granada. He had a direct influence on the poet’s arrest and later boasted of having shot him twice.

There is a lot of legend about that death.

Yes, a lot has been written about Lorca, but Caballero and Barrachina, authors of the show, are specialists in Lorca and all his steps up to the point of shooting him.

Does it force you to get into such a political issue?

No, because this is in history and that’s how it happened. Lorca was killed for a mistake. He had to go to an interrogation and they went ahead.

Do you expect the nieces to see the show? Why are you going to Granada?

I hope so. In addition, there is a lot of expectation because it takes a lot of risks with twelve actors on stage and it is not a subsidized performance.

Have you done Lorca before?

Many years ago I did a comedy at El Teatro de la Zarzuela. And then I had many ballots to do the series ‘Death of a poet’, but it couldn’t be. Now, I’m not old enough to play Lorca, but I’m going to play one of his murderers.

In 2021, you worked in Mérida and you said that you were no longer going to do theater.

It is true that from there they have offered me things, but I wanted to return to the theater with something that I really liked and that was important.

You have always been a stage actor.

I made my debut in the theater with Sazatornil and then they gave me a role in the cinema and I did a lot in the eighties. Later I returned to the theater, I love it, because it is the natural space of an actor and you have to face a different text and audience. That keeps you very much alive.

Has the theater changed?

There was a time when people stopped going to the theater, but after the pandemic, people have gone back to the theater because they want to see life.

Many famous faces of the first order are doing theater. Well, except for Penelope and Bardem, which must be out of fear.

It must be because of that. For an actor, being on stage is a magical moment.

Is it true that each role is different?

Each public is different and depends on the cities.

After 45 years in the profession, have you thought about retirement?

I had thought about doing things that I liked, because I can afford it. I will retire when I see that I don’t have the capacity to get on stage. I continue to learn every day from my colleagues.

You have been lucky enough to work with the great actors in this country, how do you see young actors?

They have had more resources than in my time, when there was not even an Official School of Dramatic Art. They are more academically prepared, but all that taken to the stage has nothing to do with it. Many, especially on television, lack diction, because it seems that they are chewing instead of speaking. I have to turn up the volume. The diction is given to you by the theater. But it must be said that there are young actors who are glorious to listen to.

So many years in the profession, do you have any thorns in your back?

Not anymore, I did have the privilege of not having worked at the Teatro de Mérida, because I am from Extremadura. And it was fulfilled. But I have worked with the greats. Not the same with Almodóvar, because he said that he looked like Antonio Banderas to me, and I understood him.

As we said, you have worked with big stars, many of whom are disappearing. Do you think they are recognized in life?

It is true, they are not given the recognition they deserve. For example, nothing has been done to my friend Pepe Sancho and he deserves to be remembered. In this country you don’t take care of the big ones. Time forgets them. Tributes must be made in life.

You, at least, already have a place with your name in your town.

I have been enjoying it since 2018. In my town they are proud of me, because I left there when I was ten years old.

What is the secret so that the years do not pass by you?

I haven’t done anything to myself. It must be genetics and eating well. I have never exercised and now I have joined the gym.

And leagues in the gym?

I go when there are few people and I take a shower at home. (laughs)

Haven’t you fallen in love again?

No, I don’t miss a partner. They have loved me a lot and I have loved too. But now I’m fine and I want to enjoy my friends. It doesn’t cross my mind, although you never have to be closed to love.

One of your projects is a series about the Bécquer brothers. Why are historical figures so interesting?

They are history and are studied in schools. Well, now I don’t know anymore, in my time yes. Public television should encourage more to do things about those characters.

It’s funny because there are series like ‘Mariana Pineda’ that are still being watched on platforms.

Yes, that series that I worked with Pepa Flores and the cast was magnificent, they continue to be seen even in other countries. Like other series I’ve worked on, such as ‘Verano azul’.

Do you regret not having made a career outside of Spain?

I had the opportunity to make soap operas in Mexico, but there were things in Spain that tied me down, like work and my family. I do not regret. I no longer have the ambition that I had when I was twenty. Before, I used to get very nervous when the phone didn’t ring, but now I take it differently.

In those moments, did you not think of throwing in the towel?

No, because I love my profession.

Have you thought about writing your memoirs?

I do not rule. I did a little biography, ‘El hijo del andaluz’, which was a tribute to my father and people encourage me to write a second part. If God gives me health, I will do it. Because my life has been filled with many good things, but also bad. I have met very interesting people and I feel privileged.