Ensemble Espanol Dance Theater puts flair in 'Flamenco Passion'
DANCE REVIEW
Ensemble Espanol's eloquent and invariably intensely dramatic "Flamenco Passion" program, which received three performances this weekend at Skokie's North Shore Center for the Performing Arts, began with the rumble of horses' hooves and the projection of an impressionistic image of horses in mid-flight.
Only then did a group of dancers arrive on stage -- clad in black, and moving slowly but forcefully out of the shadows to perform the first segment of "Suite Albeniz," a four-part dance to the music of Spanish composer Issac Albeniz. Three of the section were choreographed by the company's founder, Dame Libby Komaiko (a master of elaborate stage formations), with a formidably sensual duet created by Paloma Gomez, and danced superbly by Gomez and her partner, the sensationally fiery, technically brilliant Cristian Lozana. (Guest artists Gomez and Lozana are former members of Madrid's National Ballet of Spain.)
Such theatrical flair was in evidence throughout the program, whether the dancing put a semi-balletic twist on the flamenco vocabulary, or, as in Juanjo Linares' "Costumbres Valencianas," turned traditional Spanish dancing into a folkloric "street scene" drama that captured the spirit of the seacoast city of Valencia in all its color and gaiety. The work simultaneously showcased the full troupe of more than three dozen dancers, including members of the youth company.
The program's second half pulled out all the stops. It began with associate artistic director Irma Suarez Ruiz's world premiere piece, "No Me Olvides" ("Do Not Forget Me"), in which eight women, in sleek midnight blue flamenco dresses, took their places on chairs in the town square and were eventually joined by a sextet of males in gray suits. The romantic intertwining here was accomplished with great subtlety of motion and gesture.
Gomez and Lozano returned for another blazing duet, "Tan Lejos, Tan Cerca" ("So Far, So Close"), in which Lozano, a firecracker of a dancer, once again dazzled. And another guest artist, Carmela Greco, a frequent visitor with the company, offered the U.S. premiere of "La Union" ("The Union"), an homage to her father, fabled flamenco dancer Jose Greco. A woman of true gravitas, Greco was trying on the "Farruca," a dance form performed exclusively by the men in her family. Costumed in gray slacks, a pleated white shirt and vest, she demonstrated the eloquence of her fluid, highly controlled footwork -- sometimes standing in place and letting her rhythmically beating feet send vibrations throughout her body.
The program closed with Komaiko's masterpiece, "Bolero," set to the familiar Ravel score (a cleaner recording is needed), with projections of Picasso paintings adding heat and color. This is dance drama on a fabulous scale, from the opening sequence -- in which five women, dressed in brilliant red, appear to be doing their morning ablutions with a repetitive theme and variations -- to the ever-escalating finale in which the full company masses in a swirl of motion enhanced by flickering fans and twirling capes.
At various points throughout the program, the presence of four master musicians provided added authenticity. They included flamenco singer-guitarists Paco Fonta and Pansequito, and guitarist Antonio Gabarri Jimenez of Spain, and Chicago percussionist Kassandra Kochoshis.