| Text: Estela Zatania
Photos: Paco Sánchez
Chicuelo
Bodega Los Apóstoles. 1900h
Guitar: Chicuelo. Cante: Mónica Navarro. Viola: Elisabeth Gex. Percussion: Isaac Vigueras.
Closing out the series of three guitar recitales, “Bordón y Cuenta Nueva”, Catalonian guitarist Juan Gómez “Chicuelo” had a brilliant showing at the Bodega Los Apóstoles where he demonstrated that a flamenco guitar soloist doesn’t have to sacrifice flamenco in order to compete with the omnipresent jazz sound which has taken over the newest generation of guitarists in Spain.
The first two pieces were variations on the characteristic sound of Levante, and a soleá, classic within a modern approach, with user-friendly compás available at every moment and good taste in the use of contemporary harmony. A percussionist joins in for alegrías in Mi position, and bulerías. Chicuelo’s playing is heavily based on aggressive rasgueados and a clean swift picado, which situates him in the decade of the nineteen-nineties, before Vicente Amigo and others introduced the “helium effect” whereby flamenco guitar lost specific weight and floated away ethereal. A viola and female singer join the group for modern-sounding fandangos, bulerias and tangos.
In the improvised fiesta finale Chicuelo requested the participation of some “friends” that had come to see him, most notably Miguel Poveda and Pastora Galván.Miguel, whom Chicuelo accompanied for years, delighted everyone with his tasty bulerías, and Pastora spared no energy in her bulerías dance bit.
Eva Yerbabuena, “El huso de la memoria”
Teatro Villamarta. 2100h
Dance: Eva Yerbabuena. Guest artists: Patrick de Bana.Special collaboration: Aida Badía and Eduardo Lozano. Corps de ballet: Mercedes de Córdoba, Asunción Pérez “Choni”, María Moreno, Mariano Bernal, Eduardo Guerrero, Juan Manuel Zurano, Alejandro Rodríguez. Guitar: Paco Jarana, Manuel de la Luz. Cante: Enrique Soto, Pepe de Pura, Jeromo Segura, Rafael de Utrera. Percussion: Manuel José Muñoz “Pájaro”. Sax-flute: Ignacio Vidaechea
 “All I really know is that what I feel becomes understood when I dance to the cante of soleá, seguiriya or mirabrás”.Those are words signed by Eva Yerbabuena which appear on the program notes of her latest work.So the big mystery that always presents itself with this dancer’s shows is, why are we forced to put up with over an hour of foggy symbolism, modern dance with no Spanish, much less Andalusian references, incoherent pseudo-mysticism, group choreographies of limited interest and a tatooed modern dancer who projects a less than pleasant image, at least for yours truly, among other forms of punishment.Perhaps it’s a way of reaching a bigger market, or filling in time, or presenting an image which is somehow “different”, or attracting funding, or a combination of all of the above.No matter how you slice it, these are not objectives at the service of flamenco or Spanish dance.It’s like when your mother used to say “Eat your vegetables or there’s no dessert”.If you want to see Eva Yerbabuena dance, you just have to put up with the rest.
So let’s talk about the two dances Eva concedes in the hour and three quarters duration of “El Huso de la Memoria”, a work that premiered in September of last year at Madrid’s Teatro de la Zarzuela. She is a magnificent dancer, original and fascinating, usually enjoyed by everyone, regardless of their orientation.She is different and stylized, without ever abandoning flamenco as she draws tantalizing forms with her bata de cola and shawl in mirabrás, or makes time stand still and moves through the compás with her signature soleá (the form which most often has inspired masterful interpretations throughout the history of flamenco dance).A certain excess of choreography and shortage of spontaneity only shows through when Eva isn’t inspired, and at the Villamarta she managed a frankly excellent performance, measuring each movement, inserting it with absolute precision in each nook and cranny of the music – a sign of the depth of her talent.She is feminine and round, surprising and intelligent, with an infallible nose for flamenco. Which is why the mediocre filling in the rest of the show is all the more disappointing.People are reluctant to criticize this outstanding dancer, but applause doesn’t lie: effusive for Eva, bored and cold for nearly everything else.
María José Franco, “De grana y oro”
Sala La Compañía. 2400h
Dance: María José Franco, Patricia Aparicio, Asunción Armario, Oliva Cordero. Guest artists: Pepi de Ignacio, Luisa la de Enriue, Loli Jiméncez, Gabriela Valencia. Guitar: Paco Iglesias, Juan Manuel Moneo, José Antonio Gómez. Violín: Alexis Lefevre. Cante y palmas: Juan José Amador, Luis Moneo, Morenito de Illora.
Cádiz dancer María José Franco, who for years was Antonio el Pipa’s partner, made her own company last year and came to the Festival de Jerez to claim her rightful place among the stars. In the reduced dimensions of the Sala La Compañía, she presented her show “De Grana y Oro” with a group of fifteen; unheard-of for this small venue usually given over to more humble ventures.
From the first moment the dancer appears on stage in a sassy white pants-suit with an electric red backdrop and the sound of a violin to dance an energetic farruca, you know she’s determined to make it in this difficult world. From her years with Pipa, she learned her lessons about staging and direction, as well as the importance of discipline, at least in herself, because the rest of the group was still green. A siguiriyas danced with the three female dancers in black jumpsuits and wielding canes, shows the clear commercial intent of the group’s leader, and that’s not to criticize, but it’s at odds with her repeatedly expressed desire to represent traditional flamenco in a natural way.
Tientos, with the voices of four women, is followed by “jaleo” compás for bulerías extremeñas. Then cantiñas, and an overly long soleá which is not made any more palatable by the dancer’s lack of charisma, although she is clearly competent, and struggling to find an identity of her own.
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