Theater and Child Labor Companies in Medellín. The Merceditas Escobar Case in Frutos de la Montaña (1939-1946)

Abstract

This article is a contribution to the social history of childhood and theater in Colombia. It studies the formation and tours of the Youth Company from Zarzuelas-Fruits of the Mountain, which Merceditas Escobar was part of, one of the most important actresses in Medellin in the first half of the twentieth century. The itineraries of the company and its lead actress, allows the reflection on the social representations of childhood and gender, which gave way to a particular treatment of the child labor problem.