The best boy in Spain =

Lope de Vega, David M. Gitlitz

"The Best Boy in Spain introduces us to a world in which scheming and intrigue make marriage a "weapon of diplomacy." Isabelle of Castile is without husband, and in fifteenth-century Spain marriage was an opportunity for alliance, for creating bonds of friendship, for reducing potential enmity, and for linking another's assets with one's own. Isabel's decision is so important politically that she becomes the center of nefarious schemes in which her advisors and her half brother, King Enrique IV, vie to control her destiny while various suitors compete for her hand. Isabel must overcome serious obstacles, including virtual imprisonment and lack of funds, before she triumphs and marries Fernando, the best boy in Spain. The play is notable for its use of tableaux, static scenes heavy with political symbolism, which lead the spectator to view the Catholic Monarchs with almost religious...

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