Issue link: https://maltatoday.uberflip.com/i/567101
maltatoday, SUNDAY, 6 SEPTEMBER 2015 30 This Week How does poesiaFlamenca dif- fer from your previous shows? Would you say it marks an evo- lution of some kind? This is Inspiracion Flamenca's second performance following the success of 'Pasion' in 2013. Pasion dealt with a reflection and portray- al of the passionate dimension of flamenco and Spanish dance – pas- sion through expression. The main idea revolved around the idea that passion is the most marked and striking aspect of flamenco and Spanish dance. This upcoming production is en- titled poesíaFlamenca which forms part of Ide@ season at Spazju Kreattive, St James Cavalier. po- esíaFlamenca is a fusion of Spanish dance, flamenco and contempo- rary flamenco with Maltese poet- ry. The concept of poesíaFlamenca differs from Pasion as it deals with a journey to the soul of Spanish dance and contemporary flamen- co, it reflects an emotional and philosophical journey that is ex- pressed through dance and poetry which have been fused together in this journey… and understand its profundity. Furthermore, there are several other elements that make this produc- tion unique; including innovative choreogra- phies with several styles of music as well as ex- ploring the contempo- rary aspect of flamenco. Contemporary flamenco and Danza Estilizada are gradually becoming glo- balised. For this reason, contemporary flamenco is thriving much more on a global scale. This production may be con- sidered as being evolu- tionary for this reason. The fusion itself between Spanish dance and Mal- tese poetry in equilib- rium with each other may also be considered to mark an evolutionary path. Flamenco is an ev- er-evolving art and many artists are exploring sev- eral ways to be innova- tive when 'transporting' flamenco to the interna- tional stage. The company's dancers will be performing both Danza Estilizada and Flamenco as they have all professionally specialised in these niches. The members of Inspiración Flamenca include: Bettina von Brockdorff, Caro- line Caruana, Marisha Bonnici, Robert Scicluna (dancers) and Caroline Mattocks (percussion- ist: cajón). The two guest artists collaborating with Inspiracion Flamenca are acclaimed authors and poets Norbert Bugeja and Walid Nabhan. What led you to decide on fusing poetry and dance? Poetry forms a very large and vital part of flamenco, particu- larly in flamenco's song or 'cante'. The cante is comprised of poetry, whether it is traditional or mod- ern. The cante is reflective of its particular and unique expres- sion in each rhythm or 'palos'. The concept of poesíaFlamenca originates from this fact. Fus- ing our work with poetry felt like a natural choice for me, re- ally. Each palos or melody, form and rhythm portrays a particular expression or theme. This theme would be reflective in the poem which is sung by the singer in the cante during a flamenco dance. The Maltese cultural identity, by means of Maltese poetry, was an interesting option to fuse together with Flamenco. How did you set about choosing the 'right' poets for the occasion, and what were some of the main challenges of putting the whole ex- hibition together? The selection of poetry for poesía- Flamenca was an important key to the production's progression. As artistic director, I sought for fea- tures such as rhythm, musicality and depth of thought in the poems – which is what ultimately led me to choose Walid Nabhan and Norbert Bugeja. The two poets have distinct literary styles. I had read several po- ems by Norbert which all dealt with Spain and I believed that they truly reflected Spanish scenarios and places, which I found inspiring. On the other hand, Walid's po- ems are very musical, rhythmical and deep which complemented the themes embedded into the produc- tion of poesíaFlamenca extremely well. There were a few major challenges when undertaking the process of fusing the dance, music and poetry together. The first was to select the music that would reflect the par- ticular theme or expression that one would be exploring. The second, to build a choreography that reflects these two aspects and finally, find- ing an equilibrium between reciting the poem, the breath of its themes, and including all the aspects within this process. What are the themes that you've chosen, and what led you to choose these themes in particular? There are three themes present throughout poesíaFlamenca. The three themes include: 'fuerza' or strength, 'vida' or life and 'ritmo de fusion' or rhythmic fusion. The dancers choreographed together as well as separately, in their respective specialised Spanish dance – danza estilizada and flamenco specialities. This led to innovative choreogra- phies that are all distinct from one another. This factor makes poesía- Flamenca an extremely versatile production. The focus of poesíaFlamenca is dance. However, in those choreog- raphies which are fused with poetry, the poetic expression is portrayed through the dance choreography simultaneously. The three themes Flamenco, on the way global domination Incorporating poetry by Walid Nabhan and Norbert Bugeja, flamenco dance performance poesiaFlamenca will seek to take full advantage of this rich Spanish dance form's potential. TEODOR RELJIC speaks to Bettina von Brockdorff, artistic director of Inspiración Flamenca, who will be staging the event at St James Cavalier on September 18 and 19 poesiaFlamenca dancers Robert Scicluna and Marisha Bonnici. Photo by J. Genovese Bettina von Brockdorff