In 16th- and 17th-century Spanish drama, an entremés (plural entremeses) was a short, comic theatrical performance of one act, usually played during the interlude of a performance of a long dramatic work.
The entremés form later evolved into the sainete.
[1][2][3][4] When the genre begun, it was written both in prose and verse (poetry), but after Luis Quiñones de Benavente (1600–1650) defined the genre, all works were written in verse.
The usual characters of the entremés were the common people; the plot usually satirized the customs and the occupations of the characters, subjects that couldn't be treated in the dramatic works during which the entremés works were played.
Sometimes the playings included songs that were the origin of another genre, the tonadilla.