EIKO at La Chumbera: 26 Apr. 2008

Eiko Takahashi is one of the best known flamenco dancers in Japan. She has lived in Granada for nearly 10 years since she was invited by Mariquilla to teach Sevillanas at her academy. Eiko has made the historic Spanish town her second home for her flamenco, living among local ginatos. She has developed her own style of flamenco dancing, with gracious aire and gracia as well as deep knowledge of flamenco cante and folk songs in Granada.

Only in order to see her performance, did I fly to Granada for the weekend. It was a very short stay, but I could still appreciate the grace and beauty of the place – rows of white houses, cobblestone lanes and pretty patterns on them, Alhambra Palace showing its face from any corners, the blue sky, orange trees… I also enjoyed seeing things such as a man horribly singing to a flamenco CD in his house, a waitress clapping and a waiter singing to a Rumba Flamenca CD played in their bar, a man looking up at Alhambra Palace to play the guitar. It was a pity that there were quite a lot of ugly graffiti on houses and historic buildings, though.

La Chumbera, a small flamenco-specialised theatre, is located on a hill in Sacromote area. The backside of the stage is fully glazed, so that you can see through Alhambra Palace. For Eiko’s show, the venue was almost to capacity and there were quite a few tourists as well as local people and some Japanese people staying in Spain at that time. The show started around 9.30pm. Alhambra Palace behind the glass window was illuminated and looked mysterious. Eiko, who danced in front of the beautiful scenery of Alhambra Palace over the hill, was even more beautiful than the treasury building.

She made her first appearance in a bright red dress, dancing into the music which was possibly Fandango de Granada (Maybe something different… The guitar sounded like Paso Doble with triple measure, though). The choreography was in a way modern comparing to her normal style - holding up the skirt then let it go down to the rhythm, turns after turns elegantly… Her turns are so rhythmical and accurate, as if she doesn’t need any effort.

Then, the show moved onto Tango de Granada. She was still in the red dress and remained seated for the first part of the music. She was trying to do the clapping to encourage her band, but she must have got something in her eyes while dancing earlier, as she kept rubbing something off from her eyes. She suddenly stood up and disappeared from the stage, then came back after a few seconds as if nothing happened. Finally she started to dance.

Her gracious Tango de Granada involved a lot of movements representing Granada’s traditional life style, such as sowing a field with seeds, hand-washing the skirt, playing on the swing… Even when she was fixing her earrings while walking, or when she picked up a dropped accessory from the floor and threw it away into the backstage, every movement of hers was fit the music. I could feel her sincere respect for the culture and legend of flamenco. I hope the local people, if not the tourists, could appreciate her deep affection for Granada through her dancing.

As soon as Eiko had gone to leave two singers on stage for their cante solo, some tourists started chatting. They got several ‘Sh!’ from local flamenco fans until they finally became dead quiet and faced to the stage again. I thought it couldn’t have happened if it had been Japan or the UK, in different ways – in Japan, you wouldn’t ignore cante solo like that; in the UK, nobody would give you a sensible ‘Sh!’ so that the site would remain noisy. The first song was Martinetes and the second one was Fandangos or Granainas (sorry, I’m not sure actually).

Eiko came back on stage for la Cana in a shiny green-ish dress with darker coloured rucks for extra flaring.. The song was uniquely characterised with Arabic or Islamic sounding chorus parts like ‘eee, eee, eee…’, which turned the music into something exotic. She received a jaleo saying ‘Que gracia!’ from the audience especially for her trademark of ‘bull-fighting act’ (impressions of fiesta de toros). It matched so well with the music and atmosphere she had been creating.

The show was nearly concluded by Eiko’s speech in Spanish, by which she thanked to the audience and expressed her respect for her second home. Finally, fin de fiesta started off with one of the singers dancing, followed by Eiko. I expected that she would let the musicians dance, including the guitarist by taking away the guitar from him, just like she normally does in Japan. Although this didn’t happen, she entertained us with her recent favourite movements of ‘volaera’, a windmill. I couldn’t help putting a big smile on my face, as big as her volaera circles rhythmically made by her arm.

The show itself was shorter than I expected, but I learned that she is more spontaneous and relaxing than when she is in Japan. I suppose that flamenco artists working in Japan don’t normally know Granada style of flamenco including the guitar and songs, as Granada is a minor place for most of the professional flamenco artists. At la Chumbera, she was like the green scenery, fresh orange scent, pure stream, artistic cobble pavements, reddish sand, bright blue sky of Granada.

London Flamenco Festival: 16 Mar. ‘Viva Jerez!’

This showcase of Jerez-based artists closed the London Flamenco festival 2008. There was nothing wrong with it, but I think I was too satisfied with the Israel’s show to fully enjoy another one in the same week…

Still, Maria del Mar Moreno symbolised very well of flamenco Jerezano by her expressive dances, as if she was wearing and caressing the series of cante sung for her. She also entertained us with her own singing, even when she was dancing bulerias.

Another guest dancer, Mercedes Ruiz, impressed us with her stunning techniques as if she popped out from a dance manual. I could see why many flamenco dance students have taken her as a model, but couldn’t see in what way her style symbolises Jerez.

While I liked the male dancer, who entertained us with his rhythmical and comical performances, I was shocked to find out that I didn’t really enjoy the dances by Angelita Gomez, who also appeared in the show. In fact, I hadn’t realised that it was her until I later checked the programme carefully. Maybe I was blind, or maybe her petite figure and traditional style didn’t really suit such a huge theatre setting. At the finale, a Japanese-looking lady placed two bunches of flowers onto the stage so that two dancers could pick them up as gifts, and I’m sure that she meant them for Maria and Mercedes, but it was Maria and Angelita who picked them up. It was obvious though, because Angelita is their teacher and the greatest among the three. I’m just disappointed with myself that I couldn’t appreciate her style this time…

London Flamenco Festival: 13 Mar. Israel Galvan

It was the show to which I was looking forward the most, but it wasn’t for others - the balcony seats were almost empty. I could have a seat in comfort, being free from pressure of a crowd, and fully enjoy the show.

When you see flamenco shows in London, whether it’s in a restaurant or theatre, you will hear the audience whistle and applaud for the dancer’s footwork. They seem to assume that a performance is over as long as the dance part ends, even though the music has not finished completely. Even if you want to enjoy the music till the end, it might be lost among the noise. If you notice, the guitarist and singer might be confused or even disappointed by the treatment. Although the audience don’t at all mean any harm but just want to show the simple fact that they are enjoying the performance, it often distracts and disappoints me… I have even seen some people busy chatting, ignoring the singer’s singing a solo between dance performances.

For this Israel Galvan’s first appearance in London (am I right?), however, there were luckily quite a few flamenco-literate people in the audience. So, instead of ill-timed whistling and clapping, their jaleos and even laughter came at perfect timings during each performance. I could also enjoy the ‘right’ responses from the audience as well as Israel’s magnificent dancing itself.

His style is absolutely unique and might look even weird. His movements are in a way Byzantine fashion, intricate, avant-garde. For me, however, his flamenco style as such seems to be based on something very simple and pure. His dancing is complicated and simple at the same time - I think his talent makes it possible very easily. The stage itself was so simple as well, with a dancer (Israel), a singer and a guitarist only. Usually I’m not very interested in male dancers, but Israel is special for me. His rhythm, timing, movements, shapes, sounds… everything is perfectly flamenco. I felt very refreshed and happy after seeing his performance.

Comparing to other events at this Flamenco festival, the audience was obviously smaller, and I got worried if he wouldn’t be invited to London again. But he turned out to be audience’s favourite – they requested ‘otra’ twice! Even at ‘Mujeres’ they didn’t call for an encore. It seemed as if they didn’t want to let Israel go home yet.

For encore, I was wondering why Israel sat on the left hand side from the audience. I should have predicted what was going to happen… The guitarist murmured something and passed his guitar to the singer, and the singer started to play the instrument as well as a professional. Then… Israel started to sing! It was a buleria. His voice was so sweet. While we were still excited at seeing such a sport, the guitarist stood up, started to dance, like Israel! I mean, he couldn’t or didn’t obviously dance like Israel, but he showed some ‘Israel-like’ movements on purpose, which entertained us so much. Ole!

Israel somehow reminds me of my flamenco teacher in Japan. When I see them dancing, tears and laughter come out. They make me overwhelmed by a flood of emotions, laugh by showing some comical sides. I feel as if I am experiencing a great world, greater than any existence in this world. Still, both dancers are not intimidating but purely entertaining. Their styles are not the same or similar; Israel is in a way anti-traditional, my teacher, on the other hand, respects the old style of flamenco. Israel shows eccentric movements, while my teacher likes indigenous choreography. Nevertheless, similar emotions swell inside me when I see their performances. I would feel refreshed and warm, as if I’m saved from something negative.

London Flamenco Festival: 12 Mar. ‘Mujeres’

The show was directed by the veteran Mario Maya, featuring three bailaoras from different generations - Merche Esmeralda, Belen Maya and Rocio Molina. The guest cantaora, Diana Navarro, also performed as the icing on the cake.

Although I wasn’t personally impressed as much as I was by Pastora, all the three dancers proved their own uniqueness and presences.

The guest singer, Nadia, entertained us with her stunningly beautiful and powerful singing. Her high tone voice was muy flamenco (flamenco voices don’t have to be husky) and she even sang a Saeta. She wasn’t much involved in the dancing performances, except when Merche elegantly danced to her singing, using three chairs. Using chairs… It reminded me of the Pastora’s weird choreography, but Merche, in contrast, using not one but three, was ‘elegant’. Even though she pushed two of them down at the end, she was still ‘elegant’.

For baile solos, Belen Maya danced Tango, Merche did Solea wearing a bata de cola, Rocio Molina did Seguiriya. I think the audience’s favourite was Rocio, and even my husband said she was the best, with her complicated arm movements and footwork. Her choreography was full of agogics – sharp contrasts between escalating and slowing down during the music.

For me, Belen was possibly the best. Her style isn’t very feminine, and her movements might be symbolised by her zigzag shaped arms which conservative flamenco fans wouldn’t like. But she seemed to be responding to the songs better than the other two.

As for Merche, I was determined to enjoy her performance this time – in ‘Gala Flamenca’ shown at Tokyo Flamenco Festival in 2005, I somehow fell asleep when she was on. So, this time, I was looking forward to seeing her for the real first time, but, again… Well, this time, I didn’t fall asleep but I realised that I got nearly bored halfway. I really didn’t mean it, though. Maybe her style isn’t really my taste for some reasons… but I don’t know why…

There were some conceptual dance performances between solos, either by the duo of Merche and Rocio, or Belen and Rocio, but they were too abstract for me to figure out. One of my flamenco classmates, who happened to see the same show, later said that she didn’t like it either.

The last performance, Caracoles by all of them wearing bata de colas, was fabulous. Each of them was featured individually in turns, Belen using an abanico, Rocio palillos and Merche a manton. Belen impressed me the most, as I hadn’t known that she could dance that elegantly. The singers were outstanding as well.

At the end of the show, as I expected, Mario Maya appeared on stage, invited by Merche. For fin de fiesta, Belen danced first, then Rocio and Merche respectively, and finally Mario. Some people from the audience didn’t seem to know who he was, but his brilliant una pataita made everyone excited, I believe.

As I mentioned, Belen seemed to be responding the best to the singing. At the fin de fiesta, her palmas were as vibrant as her dancing, as if the rhythm was springing from her well-flamenconised body. Her style might not be for everyone, but in the spirit of flamenco, I think she is one of the ace artists.

London Flamenco Festival: 10 Mar. Carmen Linares, Miguel Poveda, Juan Carlos Romero, Pastora Galvan

Carmen Linares and Miguel Poveda, acclaimed flamenco singers, were accompanied with Juan Carlos Romero’s fine guitar music and Pastora Galvan’s passionate dancing.

Apart from Pastora, who is one of my favourite bailaora, I was only interested in Carmen in terms of her deep singing, but I was so taken aback by and impressed with Miguel, especially by his almost never-ending, prolific Tangos’ variation and repertoire. He looks young but his songs are so mature.

The most impressing part of the show was where Pastora danced to Miguel’s singing of the original version of Sevillanas created by Juan. Both of them looked dignified, having dominating presences. In many flamenco shows, dancers might outstand but I don’t think that’s the way it should be. I would prefer that each artist can show their presences equally, so I thought that this was one of the few occasions of the ‘right’ way of showing flamenco.

I was looking forward to Carmen’s Taranto (if without a dance, Taranta) the most, as it’s her best piece and Pastora, was going to dance to it. But when I saw Pastora’s choreography to the song, using a chair, I wasn’t initially sure what to think of it, especially of the ending.

It started off very nicely but at the end Pastora started to bend her knees outwards with showing her back towards the audience, and place her bottom on the chair which was facing the front. Then, she turned herself bit by bit and the chair also turned itself accordingly until the back of the chair was shown. Her finishing pose was her front-faced, bandy-legged posture on the chair with its back towards the audience. Bandy-legged, facing the audience… I was very worried if some people could actually see the inside of her skirt.

At first I was confused with this dancing of Pastora as it didn’t really seem sophisticated. But later I realised that it was her uniqueness, being different from other ‘superstars’ such as Eva La Yerbabuena, Maria Pages, Sara Baras or Rafaela Carrasco. These female dancers would never think of doing that kind of weird movement. Pastora is different, cheeky and cute. So, after all I really liked her dancing throughout the show, although the stunning choreography distracted me from Carmen’s singing…

At the fin de fiesta, Pastora was even more stunning. As if her body was made of springs, her movements were kind of elastic, rhythmical, boosting, refreshing and funny. The closing movement with slight diagonal jumping was so cool especially.

As a whole, I really enjoyed the performances of all the artists.

After the show, there was a free workshop for palmas in the same venue. It seemed to be organised by a few flamenco artists working in London. The guitarist was ok and he also sang, but the two female dancers hardly matched up to Pastora, inevitably. Their poor performances made me disappointed as I felt that my dancing was as poor as them, comparing to the real flamenco dancers. Still, the workshop itself was enjoyable. Although this was a part of the flamenco festival, the majority of participants were those who came for general interests in the theatre art. Seeing some nice old people struggling with contra tiempo was smile-inducing.

London Flamenco Festival: 8 Mar. Marina Heredia

The London Flamenco Festival was over last month, but I was too busy to update my blog (again)… So, starting today, I’m going to fill my blog posts with my impressions from the event.

The festival started off with the performance of Maria Pages, who is supposed to be a contemporary superstar, but I wasn’t interested mostly because I had already seen her ‘Sevilla’ at Tokyo premiere. Unfortunately my husband and I were not very impressed with the show despite the huge acclaim she gained. Her wiggling movements made all the choreographies look similar to each other, although I quite liked her usage of abanicos for Caracoles.

I also gave Farruco family a miss, as I wasn’t still sure what to think about the accident caused by Farruquito. I think I like his brother, Farru, better than Farruquito but I decided not to see their show this year anyway.

Missing out the two ‘most attractive’ shows, the first event I enjoyed at this year’s London Flamenco Festival was Marina Heredia’s cante concert on Saturday 8th March. She looked so beautiful! I got immersed in her passionate and heartwarming songs, including the brilliant Tango de Granada. The letra started off with ‘Que bonita mariquilla’, enabling me to imagine the magnificent scenery of her hometown.

She might not have attracted more audience than the Farruquito’s family who performed in the adjoining theatre, but we really liked her concert of sing-like-talking style, as well as the songs themselves. I found that, for a cantaor/a, costumes and body language are as important as their singing skills. With our big applauds and requests for ‘otra’, she looked so touched and even slightly in tears at the end of the show. Gracias, Marina!

World Figure Skating Championships 2008 – The meanings of fourth place for Daisuke & Yukari

I was soooooo disappointed with what happened to Daisuke at the game this year…

Daisuke was the favourite of this year’s championships, and that’s why his fans, including me, are so suffering with the result. Perhaps our expectation was a heavy burden on him. Anyway the result almost broke our hearts. He wasn’t defeated by anybody but himself, his nervousness, his too strong will for winning the gold.

Throughout this season, he has proved himself to be an extraordinary skater, being so artistic and dignifying. He seemed almost invincible, even though he still had some weaknesses such as spins. His short programme for this season, the hip hop version of Swan Lake, would arguably one of the most legendary programmes in the figure skating history, as well as his last year’s free programme The Phantom of the Opera.

It might be too early for him to become the world champion. He might need to get even stronger in order to win the gold, not only at the world but also in Vancouver…

Despite what I’ve been saying, I’m really happy that Jeff won this time. He absolutely deserves it with his magnificent skating skills and musicality. I was also impressed by Brian who nearly defended the title with his masculinity and strong will power. Even Johnny, who isn’t my particular favourite, impressed me with the fact that he didn’t allow himself to fall over but stayed in control on the ice. It was a beautiful game in the sense that those who had suffered from illness or injuries did overcome their problems and finally shined radiantly.

Daisuke’s fourth place was, in a way, inevitable. He deserved it with such an imperfect performance. Jeff, Brian and Johnny did simply better than him this time. Simple enough. But he should do better next time, and he can! We know that he’s one of the best skaters in the world, but he needs to prove it.

Yukari’s fourth place in the ladies was also disappointing, but in her case, she deserved better… Even though there is a good reason for her jumps to be downgraded (even her precious and uncompromised triple axel), we can’t be reasoned about why she wasn’t allow to stand on the podium. She was the one who won the audiences’ hearts, praises and standing ovation this year. It’s still a crucial improvement for her to get fourth, as she has remained fifth for 2 years. But her self-discipline, hard work and, among others, stage presence should have been paid off. She should have become a medalist at this game. I hope she will be rewarded next time…

I’m also sorry for Miki. She just needs a break. In other words, I hope the only thing she needs is a break and she will come back as the strongest contender as a ‘lady’ skater among those teenagers (I like Yuna, though).

As for ice dancing, I’m so glad that Isabelle & Olivier finally won! Congratulations!