FLAMENCO: Evolving from the folkloric dances and music of southern Spain

The Vanguards of Flamenco

How flamenco’s three fiercest figures are breathing new fire into a historic art form

WORDS BY JUSTINE BAYOD ESPOZ, ILLUSTRATION BY IRENE BLASCO


SINCE ITS INCEPTION in the late 1800s, flamenco has entranced the world. Evolving from the folkloric dances and music of southern Spain, it also takes cues from gypsy culture and classical styles of Spanish dance and guitar. The art form has developed into a rich, diverse genre, with enough demand to become a regular part of Spain’s theatrical programming.

Tablaos, however, are a bit different. The experience is intimate in these small clubs, which evolved from old singing cafes. Unlike the staged, choreographed, and heavily rehearsed flamenco productions of theaters, the shows here are entirely improvised. Their nightly flamenco programming can be a launching pad for young artists looking to hone their improvisation skills and personal performance style, while getting some coveted time in front of a live audience. The spaces are often oppressively small, maximizing profits by packing the crowd to capacity, with waitstaff slinging sangria and mixed drinks before, during, and after the shows.

It was on the tiny stage in the cramped black-box tablao of Madrid’s Casa Patas that I fell in love with flamenco dancer Israel Galván. I’d discovered Galván years prior, but it was not love at first sight. The first time I saw him perform was from the far fringes of a large auditorium as part of a fundraising gala, and my most lucid memory of his performance was thinking, “Well, that was weird.” At the time, Galván was at the precipice of international stardom, and it was precisely his unconventional take on flamenco that catapulted him squarely into the adoring limelight in cities across the world.

Galván has managed to do what almost no other flamenco artist has done: break into the far larger and more broadly respected contemporary dance scene. He hasn’t done this by fusing the two genres, but rather by creating a modern choreographic language entirely his own. Over the years he’s implemented signature moves — the open-palm hand that zigzags through the air like a fish swimming through water, the angled or diagonally outstretched arms that mimic clock dials, or the spread-finger hand positioned over the head resembling a rooster’s comb. Although Galván says the latter is a peineta (one of the decorative combs worn by women in traditional Spanish dress). All are considered classic Galván.

I saw Galván for a second time in 2009 in one of his most talked about productions, “El final de este estado de cosas, redux,” his personal take on the Bible’s Apocalypse. The piece is dark, and at times chaotic. A heavy metal band adds to already harsh overtones. The national newspapers at the time all fixated on what they considered a morbid scene: Galván dancing atop and inside a coffin. Long ago, he told me that death has always fascinated him. When I remind him of this, he explains, “When I dance, I sweat, and I sweat my fears. Dancers are lucky enough that they have both a physical and spiritual experience, and that we can release those fears on stage. Death is part of life, so death will always be with me. We’re professionals, but even so there is always a bit of madness in what we do, and I think the best way to address death is by dancing it.”

In 2009, I didn’t fully understand this vision and found his staged work jarring and cluttered. I didn't realize just what was hidden behind all of the staging until that night in 2011 at Casa Patas. By that time, Galván was already a flamenco superstar, playing 1,000-seat theaters. Performing at a cramped tablao was a thing of the distant past, but a year earlier, Casa Patas had launched Pellizcos Flamencos, a small festival of sorts that invited a handful of consecrated flamenco artists to perform in the wee hours of the morning, long after the tourists had retired. Galván’s performance was entirely pared down, and, in true tablao fashion, entirely improvised. In this situation, a flamenco artist’s every flaw can easily be laid bare, but Galván’s genius shone bright: quick on his feet, fascinating the audience with a single detail, unafraid to infuse a humorous self-awareness into his dance. With nearly perfect rhythmic timing, the way he interacted with his musicians was the essence of flamenco.

Every night in tablaos across Spain, singers, dancers, percussionists, and guitarists gather unrehearsed, sometimes having never worked together before, to perform live. They can do this because flamenco is a heavily codified artform. Without these codes and a strict adherence to them, there could be no improvisation, and the dance or music would not be considered flamenco. So even when dancers push boundaries, there are basic rules that cannot be broken. But Rocío Molina took flamenco improvisation to new heights, famously improvising for four hours straight at Seville’s Flamenco Biennial in 2016, accompanied by a myriad of guest musicians, engaging members of the audience to choose songs for her to dance to. Audience participation is not a part of flamenco tradition. The shouts of praise and a well-timed “olé” are customary, but anything more would traditionally be considered disrespectful to the craft. Molina dared to encourage otherwise.

With Molina, it was love at first sight for me. One of my favorite memories is watching her perform “Oro Viejo” at the 2009 Festival de Jerez. Dressed in a salmon-colored floor-length nineteenth-century gown with a fitted bodice, blonde hair pulled into a perfectly smooth side bun, she performed a guajira (a dance heavily influenced by the musical culture of colonial Cuba). Traditionally, they are performed by a female dancer accentuating delicate femininity with sweeping, elegant movements and a fluttering fan. But this was not your average guajira. Molina took tiny, quick steps across the stage, coquettishly dangling a fan from her hand while swinging her curvaceous bottom from side to side in a charming caricature of cloy femininity. She looked like a small wind-up doll, beautiful but mechanical. As she launched into the successive turns and the graceful balletic arms that define the guajira, Molina opted for a vivacious and playful approach rather than the typical pretty and poised. These tweaks didn’t challenge the flamenco tradition as much as they infused contemporary meaning into them, and the critical acclaim and positive reception of Molina’s new viewpoint would continue to push her in more radical directions.

Her productions often involve an exploration of the female, reflecting a deep desire to challenge stereotypes of femininity and sometimes outright reject taboos imposed on women. Molina is shorter and stockier than the dance world often likes or accepts, but the sturdiness of her body is perfect for the power of flamenco. It’s a power she infuses with a ferocious intelligence and ingenuity. She has a costuming penchant for spandex-style shorts and sports bras, a far cry from the traditionally voluminous flamenco dress. This is not a rejection of tradition, but an amplification of her choreographic style, born of an appreciation for watching flesh move. The female form is vindicated in her work, obliterating the male gaze that has for so long defined female acceptability.

In the 2016 “Caída del Cielo,” Molina portrays the fallen angel in Dante’s “The Divine Comedy.” She describes the work as a celebration of womanhood in all of its complexity, navigating the divine and the profane. In addressing humanity’s fall from grace, Molina embraces all that modern society has told women to be ashamed of, from nakedness to curiosity to sexuality, the latter of which was memorably portrayed through a snack-sized bag of chips stuck to her pubis. Each time she’d reach down to take a chip, one of her male accompanists would chidingly slap her hand away. The dance climaxes as she sends chips flying from her waistline, promptly devouring the few chips left in the bag, unwilling to leave unsatisfied.

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“My starting point for everything I create is complete freedom. Of course, that means that the final result is feminist, but mainly because of the freedom that has been denied women, because of their silence, their oppression and repression. Therefore, seeing a woman behave freely is groundbreaking when it should be something natural,” Molina explains.

https://www.departures.com/arts/option-1-the-vanguards-of-flamenco?extlink=sm-dp-socialshare-linktoshare-o

Critic on the Voices of Our Youth Program

Carla L Chasco, writer, Argentina

I am Keren

Constantly forming a self. How do we do it? We are constantly defining ourselves, everything requires a presentation, a statement. And it is never enough. Everyone is better, everyone has already surpassed us in something. There is always a goal we can’t achieve. Keren Chen brings another possibility. Maybe there are other ways to tell the story of who we are.

Since Then

 “I pray every night that I see better days” the first verse starts. And there are definitely better times for the kids at the Blue Ridge Juvenile Detention Center. An exorcism in the form of a beautifully moving film, transforming a difficult time into an expression of the things these kids are going through. The rhythm of the music and editing combined in a delicate and dedicated composition. Hopefully, this group keeps bringing us their art. 

Unacceptable

We may tend to think we have surpassed all of these issues, but still acceptance doesn't always come so easy. Old values are still around. Imperatives are engrained and the effects are hard to wear off. How does this clash with the anxious and determined youth that thinks all battles are won? The in-between is something to navigate, the acceptance of the unresolved. There is a way, tender as the pink that colors this film.

Everybody’s Business

The body is formed by words, other people's words. Everyone talks and opinions get stuck in every organ, every limb. Advice, critiques, advertisings. Speech forms the limits of the body. Anecdotes, memories, dialogue. Amilieyon Pridgen and Jessica Torres open up in an intimate conversation, personal. A confession about growing up and what it gets to know and define itself. Sometimes with more power, sometimes with less, and sometimes with a few laughs in between.

Le Clown

Classic comedy returns as a sweet balm. To highschool, in the 20s. The two old clowns bring a breeze of fresh air in the always ironic parodic meme culture. The old tricks come anew and the funny physical gags make all the kids watch with attention. They probably get weird not catching any reference but the naivety of this kind of humor is so catchy that nobody can escape the laughs.

From What you Left Behind

There’s a unique bond between two women that dance together under a sunset-covered field. The remembrance of the good times spent together symbolised in ethereal moves that converges in a perfect synergy between the two narratives: music and film. A sensitive longing. Putting together the pieces that are elusive only as memories could be, can be a romantic experience in itself, one that will endure.

Elysium

Journeying into “a world of illusion”, two girls running in prom dresses. escaping from what? looking for what? what is the reality they left? is it any? the borders are not clear and these girls navigate them. The real world, the reality, is composed of the material and the symbolic. Confusing signs and nature is part of it. Narrated by a wells-ish voice over, we are invited to accompany this dream state where we can access, not answers but truest questions about reality and the illusions that form it.

Coma

A librating of despair in between worlds. A nightmarish dream state where fears arise. This is an immersive experience that engages the spectator in the most intimate way, keeping it on the edge as the story unfolds and the eyes get bigger. The tension built is relieved only when the experience sets and we can understand, only logically, what the character is going through. But we have felt it all.

CRITIQUE ON THE SHORT FILMs "Pacing the Pool & Catch and release"

Pacing the Pool

 Solitude repeats itself, in Richard’s childhood hurt, now it heals. Where once were the feeling of loneliness now is the feeling of ultimate intimacy. In the pool, he finds the strength to simply be. More through his pain. He is one with the water.

A great wind isolates the same species, water reunites them. Parts of him were brought together to accept them as a whole, his pool family, the friends that he meets every day. A reunion with others and himself.  

Richard’s disability was only a starting point, it gave him fuel to search for something more and opened up new opportunities. As he sees it, a life of adventures. That is what water means to Richard: more than a source of healing, the medium to the essence.

The director Radheya Jegatheva opens the window for us to take a look at Richard Pace's story. Both align to step away from consistency and show his particular challenges and the way he explored them and learned from it. A particular story, hard, but part of a group of other stories.

The slow-motion shots and close-ups amplify the immersive experience and the intimate relationship Richard has with water and this pool, from this film, emerges a sincere experience. It is not a message of imperious positivity, the anguish is still there and shown and most of the time passed across. It wasn't immediate at all. Richard has its own pace now, but it wasn't given, it was found.

Catch and release

Brock Aloysius Chopra’s testimony. A recall of his personal history, as if he were around a fire, telling the story of his childhood, his family line, the women that made a mark on him, like dots waiting for something to connect.

As the story develops and the people and events are closer to the present, Brock starts to slowly loosen himself and become moved by what he is telling, the music intensifies and the intrigue goes up. Everyone taught him something and every event opened some doors and he is opening his soul to tell us his nightmares and insights. 

One-shot in one take. The experimental directorial debut of Jay Jay Jegathesan that begins as an interview develops as a trip, and finishes with a surprise is a monologue acted by himself. A recognized journeyman stage and voice actor performs here as a man of mystery, waiting to set something free.

What is he really catching and releasing? The viewer catches these questions also.  His flashbacks, memories, and dreams are catalyzers. We are invited to submerge into his journey and maybe begin one ourselves. Even though it may scare us, the way the character storytelling evolves and the echoes it produces is an invitation to follow. 

Carla Chasco is an art critique specialized in film, from Buenos Aires Argentina, currently studying curatorial studies degree at UNA. She has previously worked as a costume designer but nowadays is advocated to the other side of film.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Critique on the short film "BASTIEN & BASTIENNE"

Ben Robinson, Artistic Director of Opera Ithaca (New York) and Raylynmor Opera (New Hampshire) reimagined one of the first Mozart Operas bringing it to the most relatable present. These are part of three adaptations shot remotely during the pandemic by the director.

This singspiel, half-sung and half-spoken, is a short adaptation from the comic parody play “The Loves of Bastien and Bastienne”, inspired by the previous play “Le Devin de Village.” by Jean Jacques Rousseau. The supposed simpleness of the pastoral life that those operas portraits are perfect to bring to the time being. Its simple concept is easy to carry around for ages.

Bastienne is upset because she feels that her boyfriend, Bastien, has been distant and does not know what’s going on with him. Desperate and confused, she seeks help from Colas, a mutual friend, and magician, and follows his advice. Bastien, confused by the acts of Bastienne, does the same thing and recurs to Colas. followed his advice too. They fight and they tangle only to reconcile in a happy ending that warms the heart.

Utterly relatable, the core of the once pastoral piece fits perfectly to this time of isolation and miscommunications. Colas, the magician, seems to have fun being in between the couple playing with advice and spells. All mediated through zoom calls and social media posts.

It feels comforting to know that we’ve all been involved in something of the like at least once. Being the Colas, The Bastiene or the Bastienne. Instead of the prairies, now it's the room and the screen. There is distant communication in the the1700s and the 2000s, its different technologies, and its corresponding difficulties tangle the always difficult encounter of a pair of lovers. Games of seduction, fights, assumptions, and intermediaries are always there when it comes to love, social media, never mind the mixture of both. In this version by Ben Robinson, we can laugh through the witty dialogue and enjoy the beautiful voices of Edward Graves (Bastien) and Amanda Nelson (Bastienne). Mozart never felt this close. 

By Carla Chaco, Argentina, August 2021

 

The Red Letter Poem Project

To my mind, this may be the greatest gift poetry and art have to offer: to make the invisible visible.  And I’m not just talking about mystical visions and emotional depths – I mean the profound complexity masked by the dailiness of our existence which we, blinded by habit, most often overlook.  And, sadly, that applies to the human beings moving through their own lives in close proximity – whose love or fear, pain or exultation can go unnoticed. . .that is, until some observant eye, some artistic apprehension penetrates the veil.  That’s what Jim Foritano does here in his portrait of Al, a hot dog vendor near New York’s famed citadel of art, the Met.  Not only does Jim humanize this gentleman, he hints at the depth of suffering – emotional as well as economic – our current plague has visited upon his reality.  I might have been tempted to call Al an antihero, until I came to the poet’s lines: “Al lifts// N.Y.C. hands/ that held arms// in Vietnam” – and then I found myself feeling somewhat abashed at how easily we substitute appearances for the unique quality of our individual experience.  I cannot know all that this man is carrying within him – but close observation, or perhaps a quick conversation over a purchase (two ‘dogs, please, ‘kraut, deli mustard) can allow us a glimpse.  I’m anxious to see whether our year-and-a-half of isolation will make us, for example, more appreciative of those fellow commuters packed in beside us on the Red Line; or the clutch of tourists bustling through Boston Garden, begging directions; or even that unnamed neighbor from down the street with whom, before Covid, we exchanged only a slight nod in passing.  Jim’s poem put me in mind of the lines spoken by George Bailey, Jimmy Stewart’s character from It’s a Wonderful Life, as he rails against Bedford Falls’ stone-hearted banker: “Just remember this, Mr. Potter, that this rabble you're talking about, they do most of the working and paying and living and dying in this community.”  I have the feeling this would not come as news to Al.

J.C. (Jim) Foritano reports that “he was born and grew to some semblance of maturity in Arlington, then moved to Belmont, and is now a proud Cantabridgian.”  But as a member of the Beehive poetry group at the Robbins Library, he frequently revisits his Arlingtonian roots.  He began writing poetry in the 1960’s at Colby College where one of his professors published a chapbook of his work.  Throughout a lifetime of teaching (“and learning!”), Jim says that writing poems helps him sharpen his attention and makes himself more available to what’s happening around him.

 Plague is Plague 

Tell that to the vendor

of ‘dogs by the curb

of the Met. Others

number their dead. Al

 numbers his ‘dogs

gone unsold, gone cold,

 as the art lovers flock

to shelter.  Al lifts 

N.Y.C. hands

that held arms

 in Vietnam, but now

he patrols empty

 streets holding

dangers

 he can’t meet,

meat he can’t

 sell.  Two trucks

idle; two shoulders

 idle while Al

lifts

 empty palms

into an eloquent

 shrug: a New York

Second

 he can’t fill. –– J. C. Foritano

https://www.arrowsmithpress.com/community-of-voices

AIFF & ScriptDoor Partners

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2021 AIFF: Guest Speaker Poster Contest Awards

Announcing the Guest Speaker for the 2021 Poster Contest Award Reception

May 7th, 7 PM via ZOOM

The 2021 Arlington International Film Festival (AIFF) is proud to announce the Guest Speaker for the 11th annual Poster Contest Award Reception that officially launches the Film Festival season. Joanna Mahoney, a perfect fit with AIFF is a graphic designer and theater studies major. AIFF… not just a film festival but a celebration of the arts honors the creativity of design with the annual poster competition.

 

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Meet Joanna Mahoney a Graphic Designer on the Creative & Interactive Media team at the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston. For the past year, Joanna and her Museum colleagues have worked hard to produce meaningful digital content for members and visitors to engage with from the comfort of their own homes. She uses her illustration, motion design, and hand-lettering skills whenever possible throughout her professional work and in her personal passion projects. 

Before completing her master’s degree in Graphic Design at Suffolk University, Joanna earned her undergraduate degree in Theater Studies at Emerson College, where she learned the ins and outs of designing set & prop pieces for theater and film. That work required problem-solving through detailed research and conceptual design thinking—an approach that she carries with her into her graphic design career. 

When she is not designing, you can find Joanna listening to true crime podcasts, playing complicated board games with friends, or spending time with her rescue dog, Ozzy. A portfolio of her work can be viewed at joannamahoney.com. 

PARTNERS: AIFF & BIG APPLE FILM FESTIVAL NYC

"NETWORKING SUMMIT: AGENTS AND MANAGERS: April 21st and 22nd. Big Apple Film
Festival, in partnership with Arlington Film Festival, presents a two day
informational virtual summit with top agents and managers tor filmmakers
and screenwriters currently seeking representation. The purpose of the
event is to provide insight and
strategies for acquiring representation.

In order to provide the most opportunity for participants to ask questions
and share information on their projects LIMITED SLOTS WILL BE AVAILABLE.
Registration Deadline APRIL 16TH. Receive a 20% discount on
All-Access passes with code: AFFandBAFF2021. Register at
https://www.bigapplefilmfestival.com/networkingevents."

In Loving Memory and Appreciation of Winfred Rembert

AIFF and Friends are saddened by the passing of Winfred Rembert on Wednesday, March 31st at the age of 75. He came into our lives in 2012 when we opened the festival with the documentary, ALL ME: The Life & Times of Winfred Rembert by filmmaker Vivian Ducat. We had the good fortune to continue working with Winfred, bringing him to Arlington for an Artist-in-Residency and for numerous other screenings and art exhibits in the greater Boston area. His sense of life, his amazing ability to tell stories, and his visually compelling ways of presenting those stories in his art were only a few of his gifts that he shared with us. We are grateful for our time together.

Here is a 9-minute short film of Winfred - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WmqWma1LdY0

that was made 11 years ago by Vivan Ducat before anticipating the making of the documentary, All Me: The Life and Times of Winfred Rembert.

The New Yorker article published January 2021

https://www.newyorker.com/culture/the-new-yorker-documentary/life-after-lynching-in-ashes-to-ashes

In the film “Ashes to Ashes,” avid “Star Wars” fan and master leatherwork artist Winfred Rembert connects with his dear friend Dr. Shirley Jackson Whitaker who is on a mission to memorialize the four thousand forgotten African-Americans lynched during the Jim Crow era.

New York Times Obituary

https://www.nytimes.com/2021/04/04/us/winfred-rembert-dead.html?campaign_id=9&emc=edit_nn_20210405&instance_id=28864&nl=the-morning&regi_id=74931414&segment_id=54894&te=1&user_id=3fd4aa9e45cce955e888d80292d00d88

AIFF & BIG APPLE FILM FESTIVAL NYC

NEW 2021 FESTIVAL PARTNERS - BIG APPLE FILM FESTIVAL NYC

Big Apple Film Festival, named one of MovieMaker Magazine's top "25 Film Festivals Worth The Entry Fee", "25 Coolest Film Festivals", and Film Freeway's "Top 100 Best Reviewed Festivals", are dedicated to showcasing and promoting the highest quality films from the New York City independent film community, as well as additional specially selected films from across the country and around the world. Additionally, the festival is proud to honor a variety of New York City-based filmmakers, writers, actors, and artists who have played an influential role in the growth of independent filmmaking in the Big Apple - https://www.bigapplefilmfestival.com/about

11 annual AIFF Poster Contest Awards

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rg9lXB-T4A8

The competition is challenging participants to submit a create design

AIFF organization is more than a film festival is a celebration of the arts and is announcing an international competition for visual identification of the AIFF film festival institution in Arlington, MA, US. AIFF will serve as the venue for various cultural events – from film premieres, through film, music, art exhibitions, collaboration, partnerships, and much more. May 7th - via ZOOM

2021 AIFF VIDEOMAKER MAGAZINE PARTNER

The Arlington International Film Festival (AIFF), now celebrating its 11th year of production is proud to announce its 2021 partnership with VIDEOMAKER Magazine. Filmmakers submitting films to AIFF via FilmFreeway in 2021 will be offered a free annual subscription. 

VIDEOMAKER Magazine is the #1 publication covering all levels of video production techniques from planning to shooting to editing and distribution

VIDEOMAKER Magazine is dedicated to providing resources to filmmakers and artists in a range of categories, i.e. electronics, video, audio, entertainment, media, industries and profession, and photography.

Indie filmmakers, you are invited on a journey this year as AIFF continues to foster ways in which to connect filmmakers across economic, geographic, and cultural backgrounds, bringing together people and communities. https://www.videomaker.com/