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Choreographers
Alfredo
Velazquez
Leandro
Delgado
Dancers
Alfredo
Velazquez
Alieva
Rodriguez
Onoris Reve
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The
Royal Opera House
The
Linbury Studio Theatre
2
- 3 August 2001 |
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If any single
country merited the title Land of Dance,
Cuba would have to be a very strong
contender. Thirty dance companies flourish
in that small and impoverished domain,
and by tradition the best of their dancers
come from Guantanamo in the east. The
genius of dance flourishes there because
of the mingling of rich traditions –
African, Spanish and Haitian-French.
And it sparkles in the gifted members
of Danza Libra, a lively, eager troupe
whose energy and joy in movement communicated
itself in two wonderful evenings of
dance in the heart of Londonpan.
Danza Libra's
programme began with an eclectic representation
of Cuban demotic dance – the kind
you might see at a street party, full
of rhythm and flourishing hips. It whetted
the appetite for more; but most of the
rest of the programme took a different
turn, going immediately into an intelligent
and moving narrative called "Reflecting
on my image in the river," danced
by the company's leader and choreographer,
Alfredo Velazquez. He is a fine dancer,
mature and wonderfully expressive, very
good at conveying melancholy passion
and a troubled heart.
The best of
the five other dances was choreographed
a young member of the company, Leandro
Delgado. He gives an absorbing and entertaining
evocation of Cuban night life in "The
place of the clave and the drum",
beautifully danced by Alieva Rodriguez
and Onoris Reve. This, with "Reflecting
on my image", was the highlight of the
evening.
If there
is one small reservation it is that
Alfredo Velazquez's choreography (three
of the dances are by him) does not,
in this selection, give the company
enough scope for its talents, and in
the case of the evenings' last dance
– "That which remains with
us," a solo dance by Velazquez
himself – is unsuccessful in its
own terms. With such a huge amount of
talent and energy in this troupe, the
choice of choreography could well afford
to be more ambitious and demanding –
and Leandro Delgado should be encouraged
along the choreographic route much further.
AC
Grayling |
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