kudos

Q. Do you think of yourself as an actress as much as a dancer?

A. Of course yes, I think all dancers, when we go onstage, we have something of actors and actresses. We try to transmit feelings through the music, the song, or the silence. The difference is that we only have our body to express the words, our happiness, or our sorrow.

Q. Do American audiences react differently to you than other audiences?

A. Yes, American audiences react differently, as every audience is different. They do not react the same as the Japanese audience or the French one - all are different cultures, different lifestyles. . . . The American audience is really spontaneous and thankful for the flamenco dance, and that is always something I appreciate.

Q. When did you first know that flamenco would be your life?

A. I think I have always known it. I've danced since I can remember. For me, dance was something like play when I was a child, so that is why I do not know if I chose flamenco or flamenco chose me.

Q. How would you describe flamenco dancing at this moment versus 50 years ago?

A. Flamenco has developed a lot since then, mostly technically. Now we dance better, we know much more, but maybe the intuition has been lost a little bit. Maybe to know a lot makes us lose the spontaneity and the natural way that was there before. But there are a lot of people that come nowadays, which is very good, and we are taking flamenco around the world.

Q. Can you say what you bring to flamenco that is distinctively yours?

A. My goal when I get on a stage is to try to demonstrate what I feel - that is what makes me feel really free. I do not know if I put something important in flamenco or not, but I believe in bringing honesty and respect to the work. I think it is essential to make flamenco an art in development, an art with life.

Q. Is it possible to describe the theme of "La Puerta Abierta (The Open Door)"?

A.The open door refers to various doors. An open door to imagination, to magic, to the "duende," to what you can express with words. Another open door to the feelings of the artist, to what you have learnt. And a last door to the place where I feel so free - the scenery. © Copyright 2009 Globe Newspaper Company.

Isabel Bayón Company gave a virtuosic performance of the dramatic ''La Puerta Abierta.''

(Luis Castilla) globe review

isabel bayon got the flamenco festival 2009 tour off to an impressive start with “la puerta abierta,” a very personal glimpse at the life of a contemporary female flamenco dancer. la bayon’s transparent choreography and staging was fascinating and easy for a non-dancer to misconstrue. in a highly reflective show, it helps if audience members have shared some of those reflections themselves.

we saw many things that are relatively uncommon in theatrical flamenco, including costume changes on-stage, the dancer singing, a trap drum set on-stage for a duo, dancing with the lead singer; indeed maestra bayon was so communicative and intimate with the singer (who took the last bow) that at one point she was sitting on his lap.

“la puerta abierta” and ms bayon pay homage to the role of the cante that sets the foundation for her flights of fancy. singer miguel ortega, handily filling in for an ailing fernando terremoto, figuratively and literally took center-stage for most of the show.

it appears that bayon is double-jointed, which would explain her hypnotic arm and upper-body flexibility. this was a show for flamenco dancers who spend countless hours every week going to class; rehearsing; performing; giving and taking workshops; doing club gigs and student shows; and unwinding and freeing-up with fellow flamencos at all-night juergas. as you will see on our various review links, not all the dance critics were delighted with the concept or execution. pity.

our only criteria for evaluating a dancer is simple: would you want to take a workshop or study with them? it is hard to imagine not being positively influenced by isabel bayon; ten years after her debut at the festival as a soloist for noche flamenco, she has taken her rightful place as one of the pre-eminent dancers of her generation.

medford, MA: spanish singer and dancer la conja and classical guitarist aaron larget-caplan (both above, photo credit: planetflamenco) have been collaborating for a number of years. if the concert they presented at the springstep dance center in medford is any indicator, their fascinating amalgam of disparate yet complimentary styles - flamenco and classical - will bear artistic fruit for years to come. their show on the second night of the boston flamenco festival brought the passion and energy of flamenco to the refinement and complex harmonies of classical music in a charming excursion to the realm of creative synergy and synthesis.

“de falla could not find a gypsy to sing on key, but i could,” said larget-caplan of la conja. their show drew heavily from the spanish repertoire, essaying de falla, rodrigo, albeniz and others. larget-caplan also performed some of the lullabies from his new CD, “diablo y tango.” (see flamenco for ordering information)

although there were some complaints in the audience about the chill factor in the room, and larget-caplan was seen rubbing his hands throughout the show, the sound in the room was clean and warm, and the respectful audience let the last note of each song fully resonate.

la conja, perhaps more accustomed to venues such as carnegie hall, perfectly tailored her artistry to the room; indeed, her pitos (finger snapping) and castanet playing were almost distractingly impressive. the standing room only audience was duly appreciative.

la conja and larget-caplan bring a panache to their teamwork that makes the whole somehow greater than the sum of the parts; their ability to express their engaging personalities with technical prowess made the evening fly by.

tres bonitas! (from left: dancers maria galan, la conja and sabrina aviles. galan and aviles can be seen at tasca restaurant on commonwealth avenue. www.tasca.com photo credit: planetflamenco

boston: the boston flamenco festival brings the tribe together; (from left) dancers antonio and cheryl; guitarist pablito. no last names please, this is flamenco after all. photo credit: planetflamenco

tucson, AZ: for years we have been hearing about mele and jason martinez (above left with their flamenco del pueblo viejo student company - from left, esther sanchez-gomez, claire conrad, mele and carmen pavlic); after working on a cattle drive in nearby amado we decided to check out their new studio located at casa vicente on south stone street. jason is also an accomplished cajon player, and his cajon class was most instructive to this novice. we also took a footwork class, which had us somewhat tangled up in new (to us) drills that we will have to work on in solitude.

“and then you” ... “uh huh” dept: above right, jason and guitarist misael barraza work on the music for their next show (in april, details to be posted soon). (below, right - the rehearsal)

happy to report that flamenco is alive and well and in good hands in tucson. mele (a tucson native) and jason (of albuquerque) are products of the UNM/encinias family flamenco regime, and have the chops to prove it. well worth going out of one’s way for - we shall return!

“superb teachers - highly recommended.”

-planetflamenco

viva alegria: some things never change, but alegria in long beach is not one of them. like many other flamenco venues in southern california, it has had to reach beyond its flamenco roots to cater to the “urban” demographic (think “LOUD” and “put the beat in your behind”). although there may not be any epic late shows anymore, the resident company of guitarist jose tanaka maintains a high level of technique, emotion and energy. GM sonia woodruff gets a tip of the sombrero andaluz for her longtime commitment to providing the best in flamenco entertainment. as an added bonus, alegria still has the best latin american food in orange county.

although the lineup may vary, when we saw jose tanaka’s soniquete flamenco, dancers vanessa (above left in lunaries) and mizuho (above, left, in turquoise) were stylish and effective and the audience was vocal in their appreciation. don jose’s website, www.josetanaka.com, offers a variety of flamenco learning tools for dancer and musician alike and is well worth a visit.

cafe sevilla, with an outlet across pine avenue from alegria, is a relative newcomer in the neighborhood, with artists such as antonio triana and arturo. while the presence of two top-tier flamenco venues on the same block is unusual outside of spain, it is hard not to miss the intimate ambiance that was alegria’s strong point in the past. economic realities trump all, but perhaps the sightings of paranormal presence at alegria (noises in the basement when the club is empty, a chair moving of its own accord) are the spectre of absent dancers such as maria isabel fernandez, telegraphing their desire to re-capture the past.

photo credit: planetflamenco.com