Pedro Calderon de la Barca (1600-81) was one of the great poets and dramatists of Spain's golden age, a rival of Cervantes and Lope de Vega. His work, like that of his contemporary Velásquez, mirrors perfectly the society of his time. It also captures certain defining qualities of the Spanish mind: its strong sense of faith and honor, its mystical and romantic bias, and its finely tuned historical consciousness. Staples of Spanish golden age drama, Calderon's plays remain superb entertainment. Marking the 400th anniversary of the playwright's birth, this reissue of Edward Fitzgerald's masterful translations includes The Mighty Magician, a Faustian story of religious conversion; The Painter of His Own Dishonor, a tale of jealousy that reflects the strict Spanish honor code; and Calderon's symbolic and philosophical masterpiece, Such Stuff as Dreams Are Made Of.