Adelardo López de Ayala y Herrera (1 May 1828 – 30 December 1879) was a Spanish writer and politician.
Life
He was born at Guadalcanal, Seville on 1 May 1828, and at a very early age began writing for the theatre of his native town. The titles of these juvenile performances, which were played by amateurs, were Salga por donde saliere, Me voy a Sevilla and La Corona y el Fugal. As travelling companies never visited Guadalcanal, and as ladies took no part in the representations, these three plays were written for men only. Ayala persuaded his sister to appear as the heroine of his comedy, La Primera Dama, and the innovation if it scandalized some of his townsmen, permitted him to develop his talent more freely.
In his twentieth year he matriculated at the University of Seville, but his career as a student was undistinguished. In Seville he made acquaintance with García Gutiérrez, who is reported to have encouraged his dramatic ambitions and to have given him the benefit of his own experience as a playwright. Early in 1850, Ayala removed his name from the university books, and settled in Madrid with the purpose of becoming a professional dramatist. Though he had no friends and no influence, he speedily found an opening. A four-act play in verse, Un Hombre de Estado, was accepted by the managers of the Teatro Español, was given on 25 January 1851, and proved a remarkable success.
At about this date Ayala passed over from the Moderates to the Progressives, and this political maneuver had its effect upon the fate of his plays. The performances of Los Comuneros were attended by members of the different parties; the utterances of the different characters were taken to represent the author's personal opinions, and every speech which could be brought into connection with current politics was applauded by one half of the house and derided by the other half.