For Ballet Hispanico, Human Experience Is Always the Vehicle for Brilliant Storytelling

What can be said of Ballet Hispanico? Since its inception in 1970 under the tutelage of Tina Ramirez, Ballet Hispanico showcased the depth and brilliance of the Latin diaspora as seen through the lens of an amalgam of dance styles and idioms—be it flamenco, Graham, Horton, Limon, and Dunham techniques, ballet, lyrical jazz, hip-hop, vogue ballroom, and Latin social dances. And Ballet Hispanico has brilliantly accomplished their initial goal and motivation.

That said; we are now in another era of Ballet Hispanico. With the primary of goals of founder Tina Ramirez accomplished, one could ask, what’s next for Ballet Hispanico? With the programs assembled by current artistic director Eduardo Vilario, Ballet Hispanico has solidly placed itself in that constellation of superior dance companies that not only have a signature voice and aesthetic but are also expanding the definition of what a repertory company is. And for Ballet Hispanico that means exploring and implementing a new definition of what a Hispanic-based repertoire can include.

The program that Ballet Hispanico assembled for its performances at the famed Apollo Theater—Naci, Tiburones, and the ever-popular Con Brazos Abiertos—demonstrates how the company has evolved, but also shows where Ballet Hispanico is heading. And Ballet Hispanico now has the company members that can deftly perform with nuance its varied repertoire.

Michelle Manzanales’ Con Brazos Abiertos has been in the repertoire for quite a few seasons now, and in each performance the company finds new nuances and meaning in this highly favored work. Manzanales explores the immigrant experience in this work—which is detailed through the Cheech and Chong vocals and the Maria Billini-Padilla poem. This work references Mexican folkloric dance as evidenced in choreography that employs the undulations of flowing skirts, as well as an injection of Spanish dance with sombreros.

It is easy to see why Con Brazos Abiertos is an audience pleaser. There is something, or several things, in this work that can appeal to everyone.

In the ballet Naci, choreographer Andrea Miller draws from her Hispanic and Jewish backgrounds, and from the sense of being a stranger in a new land. And that new land being the New World. In this New World there is a sense of homelessness, and not belonging. In this remembrance of homelands and things lost, Miller choses a song that contains lyrics that speak to having no country, no love, and no home.

Interestingly, as Naci speaks to abandonment and a sojourn to the unfamiliar, the choreographic content is very rooted in being earthbound with dancers really using the ground, or floor stage, as the source of strength and undulating and churning in and out of movement that is very terrestrial and grounded. Standout dancers in Naci are Dandara Viega and Lyvan Verdecia.

Perhaps, the most interesting work of the evening was Annabelle Lopez Ochoa’s Tiburones. Ochoa has several ballets in Ballet Hispanico’s repertoire, but, perhaps, Tiburones is the most moving and provocative. As a Ballet Hispanico world premiere, there was lots of expectation, and Tiburones did not disappoint.

Ochoa explores stereotypes and discrimination that Hispanics face in entertainment and media in Tiburones. The company is assembled on stage with one cast member serving as a film/media director equipped with a cut board. The director tells the dancers how to pose, move, and position themselves. Though most of the dancers go along, there is discomfort and resistance, until enough is enough.

Ochoa carefully in Tiburones examines how stereotypes, particularly those around gender roles, diminish Puerto Rican voices. (There is a vocal of Rita Moreno discussing how the Hollywood film “Westside Story” will portray Puerto Ricans.) Ochoa deconstructs these contrived gender stereotypes—putting male dancers in high heel—to get to the true voices of Puerto Ricans in the diaspora.

Triburones is a powerful dance work, facilitating Ballet Hispanico’s ability to not only demonstrate their mastery of the dance lexicon, but also to showcase their acting ability. Standout dancers in Triburones are Lenai Alexis Wilkerson, Lyvan Verdecia, Gabrielle Sprauve, and Antonio Cangiano.

With its current appearance at the Apollo Theater, Ballet Hispanico is proving that it is one of the premiere dance companies in the US. Understanding that world dance is always about telling and speaking to the human experience, Ballet Hispanico has positioned itself as one of the best dance vehicles to do just that!! Ballet Hispanico, job well done!!

—William S. Gooch

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Image credits

• ballet-hisp-nico-in-tiburones-photo-by-paula-lobo-10.jpg — Credit/source: Paula Lobo.
• con20brazos20abiertos20c20paula20lobo-forblog.jpg — Credit/source: arts.gov.
• gabrielle-sprauve-and-lyvan-verdecia-in-nac-photo-by-paula-lobo.jpg — Credit/source: Paula Lobo.
• dandara-veiga-in-tiburones-photo-by-paula-lobo-2.jpg — Credit/source: Paula Lobo.
• ballet-hisp-nico-in-tiburones-photo-by-paula-lobo-10-2.jpg — Editorial image.