Javier Ruiz de Alegría

From 2020 to 2026, he served as technical director of Veranos de la Villa. In 2025 he designed the lighting for Zarzuela Monumental Hispanidad, the Madrid Produce production presented in San Lorenzo de El Escorial. This is a substantial part of a career that also includes technical direction at the Centro Dramático Nacional’s Teatro María Guerrero from 2012 to 2016 and the Festival VEO from 2009 to 2011. He has held technical direction responsibilities at the Festival de Otoño and Teatralia, and headed the lighting team at the Guggenheim Bilbao. His work encompasses both creating a stage space and the practical conditions that make it possible.[10][11][12][1]

Javier Ruiz de Alegría brings together two areas of training: fine arts and acting. He graduated from the Universidad Complutense de Madrid and trained as an actor at the Laboratorio William Layton. His CV also lists a year at Philippe Gaulier’s school and courses with Théâtre de Complicité in London. This dual background runs through his performances and stage designs.[4][2]

In El hombre y el lienzo, written and directed by Alberto Iglesias, the painting takes place before the audience: Javier performs and creates the visual staging. The production appeared at London’s Riverside Studios as part of FesTeLõn 2023. A Radio 5 interview explores how his acting and painting come together in this work.[3][4][7]

As a designer, he creates the stage space and lighting for Buero Vallejo’s El sueño de la razón, directed by José Carlos Plaza at the Teatro Español. For Kulunka Teatro’s Forever, he shares the set design with Ikerne Giménez and designs the lighting. The programmes document these distinct responsibilities within each production.[5][6]

Recent work includes the sets for Chavela, directed by Carolina Román; the lighting for El cuarto de atrás, Rakel Camacho’s staging of Carmen Martín Gaite’s novel; and the lighting for 14.4, directed by Sergio Peris-Mencheta and written by Juan Diego Botto, Peris-Mencheta and Ahmed Younoussi. He also designs the sets for Peris-Mencheta’s version of Constelaciones, programmed by the CDN in 2026. The same title appears in his 2014 work with Fernando Soto: these are separate productions.[13][14][15][16][3]

The set design for Forever earned him and Ikerne Giménez the 2024 Godot Award for stage design. That year, they were also finalists for the Max Award for stage design and nominees for the Talía Award for set design. His lighting for Forever was included among the initial Max candidates.[17][18][19][20]

He also shares his professional experience. La Red’s 2026 Summer School lists him among the workshop leaders on contemporary practices and challenges, introducing him as technical head of Veranos de la Villa. In interviews with Radio Euskadi, Radio 5 and Eso no es teatro, he discusses how painting, acting and stage design coexist in his work.[10][21]

His announced projects include Hashima Hamlet, created with Gon Ramos. The piece brings together object theatre, kamishibai and ikebana, with Javier performing and creating the visual design. The Festival de Otoño programme announces the premiere for 26–27 November 2026 at the Teatros del Canal’s Sala Negra.[9]