Entredos Ballet Español: the energy of dance at the service of flamenco

Silvia Cruz Lapeña

The company directed by Elena Algado and Miguel Ángel Corbacho oresents «Silencios rotos» on May 30th at Flamenco Madrid

 

“To have a dance company nowadays is a miracle” says Elena Algado from Barcelona when asked about the difficulty of maintaining a group in current times.  Things also get complicated since she lives in Badajoz, and her professional partner, Miguel Ángel Corbacho, is in Seville. “But everything has a solution: we agree on a certain place, everyone gives in a little, and that makes it possible” says the artist.

Now, they’re returning to Madrid where together they created “Silencios Rotos”, a work to be presented May 30th at the Fernán Gómez Theater in the framework of the Flamenco Madrid Festival. “It was a catharsis. It came about at a time when both of us had been ten years with the Ballet Nacional, and it was time for a change of paci, I don’t want to take other people’s orders any more, I want to lead.  It was an explosion” says Corbacho.  Algado agrees.  She explains that the time had come for her to express herself “beyond dance”, creating dances for others, telling their stories.

Energy and color

In “Silencios Rotos”, there’s no story-line, but a lot of movement. “What the audience is going to see is plenty of high-quality dancing, and a lot of energy on stage” says Algado.  Something which Corbacho seconds, saying that for the dancers, “it’s like a very intense Zumba class”.  And so it is, the hour and a half the show lasts is a journey through the diverse flamenco styles seen from the perspective of Spanish dance, but make no mistake, they don’t rest for a moment, there’s a great deal of power, and the repertoire of moves and styles is vast.

They say their dancing is unorthodox and energetic and draws from what they learned from maestros such as José Antonio Ruiz, who was first dancer with the Company of Antonio.  What they do has the hallmark of Spanish dance, but you can enjoy their taranto or granaína, styles chosen for Corbacho’s and Algado’s solos respectively.  As far as the rest, they’re accompanied by a group of six dancers and musicians such as Isaac Muñoz and singer Miguel Ortega.

In “Silencios Rotos”, color has an important role: “They serve as guiding thread, from the wardrobe to the choreography, because we go from black to white, and end with coral and turquoise for bulerías.  It’s an evolution, a change of mood with which we break the silence and move from solemnity to fiesta” explains Corbacho to Deflamenco.

Classes and suitcases

Simultaneously, the two artists work on other projects.  One of them is what they are presenting in the series Jueves Flamenco, “La Memoria del Alma”, a tribute to the various maestros who have touched their lives.  Corbacho also mentions a challenge on the horizon: “To set a number for the students of the Centro Andaluz de Danza that will debut on June 10th at Seville’s Teatro Central with music by Rafael Arregui”.

Both dancers combine their choreographic and dance work with teaching.  “Of course I give classes, lots of classes”  says Elena laughingly, explaining that she gives them at the Centro Extremeño de Danza that bears her name.  Having begun dancing as a child with no family history in the field, she feels fortunate to be able to devote herself to what she likes and does well.  “There are complications, for example, juggling the artistic life with the personal one, because she gets tired of so much traveling. But it has its rewards!”  Corbacho feels about the same way, and both let off very contagious energy when talking about their work.

In “Silencios Rotos” you can see that strength.  They took charge four years ago, and show no signs of back-tracking.

Video Entredos Ballet Español. Silencios rotos

 

Fotografías

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