Carpa Valentina was a
theatre troupe of the
Mexican
Mexican may refer to:
Mexico and its culture
*Being related to, from, or connected to the country of Mexico, in North America
** People
*** Mexicans, inhabitants of the country Mexico and their descendants
*** Mexica, ancient indigenous people ...
''
carpa'' (traveling tent) circuit during the 1920s and 1930s.
It was founded by a family of
Russian circus performers who fled the turmoil of the 1919
Russian Civil War, arriving in the port of
Manzanillo in 1923. The troupe consisted of Gregor Ivanoff, the father of the family, who Hispanicized his name to Gregorio Ivanova, his three daughters, his son-in-law Estanislao Shilinsky, a
Lithuania
Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...
n who wrote the material, and native Mexican performers. They set up their act in the
Tacuba ''delegación'' of
Mexico City.
In 1929, Mario Moreno ("
Cantinflas") joined the troupe. Shilinsky coached the comedian, then eighteen years of age, and helped him refine his style. Together, the two turned the Carpa Valentina into the hottest ticket in town.
Moreno began courting Valentina Ivanova, the daughter for which the troupe was named, but her father never approved of the relationship and refused to increase the comic's salary despite his success. Fed up with the abuse, Moreno left the troupe, bringing his writer with him.
References
Theatre in Mexico
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