May 6th. Círculo de Bellas Artes. Sala Fernando de
Rojas
HARD DRUGS BY THE HANDFUL
Text: Manuel Moraga
Photos: Rafael Manjavacas
If flamenco is a drug – and it is – some
artists manage to be highly addictive. That’s the case
of the Farruca family, on this occasion, with La Farruca,
the central figure of one of the best shows of the series
“A Corazón Abierto”. The Fernando de Rojas
auditorium didn’t quite fill up, but those of us who
were there, had gone seeking quality, substance and exquisite
tradition. It goes without saying, we found what we were looking
for.
There are many ways of understanding art. For some, it’s
an investigation. But for others, the quest begins and ends
within their own beings. Clearly, La Farruca belongs to this
second group. She needs no story line or plot to calm the
abstinence syndrome we’ve all suffered of recent years.
All she needs to do is what she does best: dance, pure and
simple.
La Faraona
From the very first moment everything is raw emotion and
power. One of this family’s virtues is being able to
create an air of expectation. It’s like when famous
bullfighters appear in the ring and you just know that something
important is about to take place. And it does. By the bushel…abundantly.
A look, a flash, a turn…these are only the prelude of the
tempest about to be unleashed. Handfuls of gypsy artistry.
Without stylization, pulling up strength from the very ground
without leaving rising about it any more than necessary, with
gripping emotion, that was La Farruca’s dance, that
of her nephew Barullo and her sister Pilar La Faraona who
accompanied the star of the evening and allowed her the required
rest periods. There was a force that was not only instantly
transmitted to the audience, but which might have been capable
of breaking the very surface of the stage. At the end of the
show, the maintenance crew looked concerned…too bad they
were unable to enjoy the cause of all that worry.
La Farruca and Barullo
Backed up only by cante and guitar (no cajón or other
instruments) La Farruca showed off her 20-karat qualities
with alegrías and a spectacular soleá. Barullo
weighed in with siguiriyas and La Faraona did bulerías
with all the art we’ve learned to expect from her.
And as if the dancing wasn’t enough, the quality of
the voices and the guitar was very high. The Anillo brother
and sister team sang with exquisite taste and El Canastero
was duly solemn. Guitarist El Perla was brilliant, at times
delicate, at times powerful, but always pulling everything
together just right.
Handfuls, indeed an avalanche of naked art, and we allowed
ourselves to be temporarily transported by the exquisite drug
which is flamenco of the highest order. Like all great works
of art, above fashion….
