Yerma

Yerma
Margarita Xirgu and Pilar Muñoz in a scene of the play.
Written byFederico García Lorca
CharactersYerma
Juan
Victor
Maria
Dolores
Two Sisters-in-law
Pagan Old Woman
Male
Female
Boy
Shepherd
Child
Six Washerwomen
Two Girls
Two Women
Two Old Women
Three Men
Seven Young Girls
Children
Date premiered1934
GenreTragedy

Yerma [ˈɟʝeɾma] is a play by the Spanish dramatist Federico García Lorca. It was written in 1934 and first performed that same year. García Lorca describes the play as "a tragic poem." The play tells the story of a childless woman living in rural Spain. Her desperate desire for motherhood becomes an obsession that eventually drives her to commit a horrific crime.