Yesterday afternoon I had the immense pleasure of attending a performance by the Centro Andaluz de Danza of
Poeta en Nueva York. The
espectáculo is based on Frederico García Lorca's visit to New York City in 1929-1930, and combines techniques of both Spanish dance (Flamenco), and American styles (jazz, hip-hop, swing, Latin, and modern dance, to name a few). I was absolutely blown away by the work, and, despite my personal dislike of the Flamenco aesthetic, I found it both analytical, and superficially entertaining.
The ballet begins with Lorca's leaving Spain, represented by his dancing Flamenco to the voice of a female soloist standing nearby him on stage, and the music of the band hidden behind a sheer curtain upstage. He soon arrives in New York City, symbolized by dancers wearing suits, and carrying briefcases in their hands and over their heads. The only face visible to the audience at this point is Lorca's, while the "suits" of Manhattan are anonymous and identical. Before long, however, some dancers appear without the briefcases obscuring their identities, showing that Lorca is beginning to feel more at ease in and connected to the people of NYC.
Lorca next visits Harlem, where he sees Black men dancing a mix of African dance and hip-hop, and he shows them Flamenco, which they incorporate into their dance in a balletic call-and-response (Lorca would dance, they would repeat) obviously paying tribute to the call-and-response tradition in Black song and religion. As strong as the choreography is in this piece, however, I found Li's, the choreographer's, depiction of these Black men problematic. This is not the only point in the ballet in which Black men are the object of Lorca's gaze, showing them to be exotic and fascinating to him, whereas in the scenes in which he visits White communities Lorca appears more lost and confused, rather than observing and studying. Li may have been commenting on Lorca's sexuality as a gay man, however it was clear in her use of his gaze that these men's blackness made them exotic and curious, a gaze which Lorca never sets upon the White dancers.
After leaving Harlem, Lorca experiences the seedy underbelly of NYC, in which Li shows her expertise of pedestrian choreography and ability to create story without words. Here, and at other points in the ballet, it was evident that Li should be directing musicals. She has a deft understanding of character, and effortlessly sews together large ensemble pieces of both dance and pedestrian movement. The piece ends with a man being shot, which lead the way into the most compelling piece of the ballet.
During her dance training, Li studied under Martha Graham, master of the contraction, and Graham's unique use of hands, feet, contractions, and arches are undeniably evident throughout this representation of death and rebirth in New York City. The shot man clutches at his chest as the stage clears but for three large white canvases upstage, and when he moves his hand away red paint is left behind on his chest. As the piece develops, more and more dancers dressed in white run on- and off-stage, collapsing to the ground to contract, arch, and clasp at themselves, leaving more and more red paint on their bodies from their hands. Soon various dancers begin to throw themselves at the white panels, leaving red behind on the panels as well, until all of the dancers and panels are almost covered in red.
At the end of the section, the panels have moved downstage, and nine of the male dancers line up in front of them to collapse in a row like victims of a firing squad (foreshadowing Lorca's murder at gun-point with three other men), holding hands. As the panels are moved away, however, water begins to fall from the ceiling in a single sheet, and men arise to bathe, dance, and play in the water, as the red is washed off of them and their clothes.
It goes without saying that the water is reminiscent both literally of parched city dwellers bathing in hydrants during the summer, and metaphorically of rebirth and forgiveness. Here, again, Lorca gazes upon the Black bodies, however this piece is such a beautiful celebration of the gracefulness of the male form, a gracefulness that is typically only recognized on female bodies, that his gaze is hardly different from the gazes of the audience members.
The ballet goes on to depict other NYC communities and racial groups, with Lorca all the while learning from the people of NYC and teaching them as well, and ends with all of the dancers, singers, musicians, and actors onstage, sharing their unique, yet equally beautiful styles and techniques. Li's ballet may be imperfect, the formations were often weak and some of her treatments of ethnic groups were problematic, nonetheless it was undeniably moving, powerful, and beautiful.
I so deeply enjoyed this espectáculo that I rushed home to research more dance performances coming up in the area. As a dancer, it is important to get out and see dance, to support fellow dancers, and to strengthen one's eye, which is essential to an understanding of dance. All I can hope is that the next performances I see are even near as moving as Li's Poeta en Nueva York.
Un beso.
