Felipe (German Cobos) , one of the courtyard's neighbors, boasts of being the only one who can resist Mari Pepa's (Teresa Lorca) charms; however, he is completely in love with her. Mari Pepa, likewise, feels jealous when she sees Felipe with two chulapas, and although they are both in love with each other, they feign a disdain they don't feel. One day, all the neighbors go to the fair, leaving Mari Pepa and Felipe alone, who continue to make small talk until they finally admit their love. However, their passion doesn't last long, as shortly afterward, Felipe reproaches Mari Pepa for looking at other men, leading to an argument, something that becomes frequent in their relationship from that moment on. Even so, they keep the whole affair a secret. Later on, the ironer Mari Pepa is forced to marry the fencer Don Leo (Tomás Blanco) because her father, the drunk and gambler Don José (Antonio Vico), has committed a robbery to pay a gambling debt and has also pawned the family jewels. That is why Don Leo takes advantage of the situation.
This is a 1960s film adaptation based on the original zarzuela with libretto by José López Silva and Carlos Fernández Shaw and music by Ruperto Chapí. The play takes place mostly in a residential courtyard in Madrid at the time of its premiere. La Revoltosa is a one-act lyrical sainete, with a libretto by José López Silva and Carlos Fernández Shaw, and music composed by maestro Ruperto Chapí. It was first performed on November 25, 1897, at the Apolo Theater in Madrid. It was directed by Ruperto Chapí. Considered, along with La verbena de la Paloma, one of the masterpieces of the short genre, it is one of the key pieces that showcases the mastery of both libretto and music. The libretto faithfully reflects the neighborhood atmosphere of the late 19th century, faithfully portraying types and situations, thanks to two highly skilled librettists, José López Silva and Carlos Fernández Shaw, who bring to the stage all the feeling and reality of Madrid in those years. The music is one of the most valued elements of this sainete. Ruperto Chapí creates a truly symphonic and popular work that captivates from the first notes of its prelude, creating a score in which the cultured and the popular go hand in hand like never before.
La Revoltosa (1963) is an acceptable and professional adaptation, but with very uneven results, especially since it was done in brilliant color. The beautiful, though unknown, Teresa Lorca is passable, not outstanding, and Germán Cobos is acceptable, but neither remarkable nor extraordinary, but simply decent. However, both are heavily dubbed, and the dubbing synchronization is not perfect. Furthermore, Chapí's music is relegated to background music, and the famous duet between Felipe and Maria is barely preserved. Highlighting the following songs: ¨La revoltosa¨, ¨Yo qué culpa tengo¨ and ¨La planchadora¨ . Germán Cobos and Teresa Lorca being accompanied by a good cast with plenty of familar faces, such as: Antonio Vico, Tomás Blanco, Manolo Gómez Bur, Laly Soldevilla, Carmen Porcel, Matilde Muñoz Sampedro, Antonio Riquelme, Manuel Arbó, Antonio Amorós, Xan das Bolas an Paquito Cano 'Locomotoro'.
There are four versions of this work; curiously, the second and third were directed by José Diaz Morales, fifteen years in between. Morales was a Spanish filmmaker immigrated to Mexico in 1936 as a refugee from the Spanish civil war. Exiled in Mexico , there he made a lot of all kinds of genres, but barely worked in Spain.
The play by Roberto Chapí It has had several film adaptations: In 1925, directed by Florián Rey with Josefina Tapias in the role of Mari Pepa and Juan de Orduña in that of Felipe; a second in 1949, directed by José Díaz Morales and Carmen Sevilla, Tony Leblanc in the leading roles y Tomás Blanco Antonio Riwuelme, Raul Cancio Paquito Cano; this is the best version and launching the two main actors to stardom. In 1963, again directed by José Díaz Morales and with Teresa Lorca and Germán Cobos as the leading roles. Finally, in 1969 Juan de Orduña directed the last version of this zarzuela under the musical direction of Federico Moreno Torroba and with the following cast: José Moreno, Elisa Ramirez, José Sacristán, Marisa Paredes, María Luisa Ponte. This adaptation was for Spanish television, but it was previously released in movie theaters.
