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Salvador Tavora..........Director.........Genius or Disturbed?
I can only describe this work as being awake in your worst nightmare: Dark, menacing, characterised by religious symbolism and drunken dwarf monks, dancers gored by bulls extended from hydraulic lifts over the audience, scenes of the crucifiction played out by the priciple dancer Lalo Tejeda.........for me it was an experience that inspired deep emotions I would see it again without hesitation.
The opening scenes to the music of O fortuna saw Lalo Tejeda, Marco Vargas and Francisco Carrasco dressed in virginal white dance a farruca after we are introduced to the pricipal cantaoras Ana Real who sits perched on a high throne and performs a powerful martinete. The four other dancers attach themselves to a machine which revolves them into the air, they are dressed as what looks like angels, the dancing with these revolving angels is most wierd.
Several scenes are designed to be thought provoking, the crying Virgin Mary appears, Christian and pagan sybollism, the start of new life with a soft shoe folk dance, the appearance to 2 beautiful white stalllions.....its wonderful stuff.
What really got to me was cantaoras Rosa Angeles solo in which the line "and Maria, crying his pain" was sung with so much emotion it hit me like a hammer, it took me back me of the last breath of my mother as if I was there again.
This performance is about dance and cante to support the images that are thrown at us. The three guitarists Manual Barrequero, Miguel Aragon and Jose del Valle do a good job but are incidental to this powerful work.
If you get the chance to see this work do so, its a treat for the eyes, ears and emotions.
For me this was a five star work by a five star Company.
RE: Andalusian Images of Carmina Bur... (in reply to Garyw1960)
Wow Gary, this sounds intriguing! So is it primarily a flamenco show or would you say more of a dramatic show with a flamenco theme? How long is it on for? Best wishes Romanza
RE: Andalusian Images of Carmina Bur... (in reply to Romanza)
Hi Romanza... nice to see you
Most definately a dramatic show with a pure flamenco theme. There are no changes of backdrop only articles that join the dancers on stage. It has a soprano, massed choir and orchestra soundtrack but substantial amounts of cante and dance (95%). I was a little uncharitable to the guitarists who belted out some clever compas with bass lines which reflected the O Fortuna quiet theme. The percussionist accompanied the dancer on his own at one stage. The dance was spectacular in its accuracy and variation with such dramatic overtones that the audience can best be described as stunned. If pretty falsetas are your fancy then you would be disappointed, if you like emotion and attitude that leaves you feeling drained then this is for you.