Defending our culture

Lizt Alfonso: "ALAS" -- Wings to fly...

So many outstanding voices cannot be wrong. Such are reviews by renowned U.S. critics for the Lizt Alfonso Dance Cuba Company, the only such ensemble from the Caribbean island that has performed on Broadway for several months. It is an all-women dance troupe that has toured countries such as the United States, France, Spain and a number of Latin American countries.
Lizt Alfonso has many followers in Cuba since the late 1990´s when it premiered the show Fuerza y Compas (Force and Rhythm), Elementos (Elements), Homenaje a FGL (Homage to Federico García Lorca) and now Alas (Wings), a successful mixture of strength, classical ballet, flamenco, modern and Cuban dance, music and good theater, staged at Havana´s Grand Theater for three weekends on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays until March 26th.
The one hour and fifteen minute play, preformed in the Cuban capital´s most important theater, consists of two acts, the first one of which includes six scenes with a dramatic tone. The second act is made up of three sort of comedy scenes, a genre that the company deals with for the first time.
According to company director Lizt Alfonso, "alas" or wings are symbols referring to the act of flying and the ballet touches the feelings of human beings in their existence and their struggle for life.
In an exclusive interview with Lizt Alfonso for the section Topic of the Week of Radio Havana Cuba´s cultural website in English, the director and dancer talked to us about the show Alas or Wings:
Hello Lizt, and congratulations for the show Alas, which I consider hit, and also for having granted this brief interview for the section Topic of the Week of Radio Havana Cuba´s cultural website in English. We know that your time is precious in the middle of rehearsals. But now, let´s get to the point.
Thank you for letting yourself be carried from your world to ours, which is our main objective in each one of our performances: to become UNO (one).
First of all, I think that, though not the only one, one of the principal positive things of Alas compared to the previous show, Elementos, is its synthesis, without leaving a single loose end in the choreography or visual part of the show. Do you agree with that assertion? Which do you think are the main differences and similarities between Alas and Elementos?
It is evident that another of our main objectives is to make, or let´s say to shape by hand, each one of our shows in a different way so that the outcome be different, diverse. Therefore FUERZA Y COMPÁS is different from ELEMENTOS and the two from ALAS, and also from so many ballets and show that we did before and that are little known by the audience that has been following us since 1998, though our company was set in 1991, and I hope that will continue.
It is true that I enjoy achieving synthesis in everything I do and hate loose ends, but I´ve always seen it that way, not only now. In fact, the technique we use is a synthesis of various techniques: ballet, flamenco, classical Spanish ballet, Cuban folklore, etc, that have marked our style, that is, have created our own personality within the Cuban and foreign dance spectrum. The differences are based on the fact that we are each time more demanding. We are never pleased, always aspire to make something qualitatively better, and the similarities lie on our objectives which don´t change.
For our readers who are sitting by their PCs throughout the world and have not seen it, and on a written page cannot visualize as music and dance show, in our opinion as company director and artistic director of the show, how would you describe Alas?
Like a trip to the souls of human beings, a trip that offers you the chance to open your wings and fly...
Including live music in it is part of our integral concept or perhaps it is in line with current trends?
I´ve never believed in "tendencies". I get close to the artistic event on the basis of what I feel and experience myself and take all those who follow me there.
In all Lizt Alfonso Ballet shows, music is live and plays the role of a protagonist. We have excellent young musicians, who have found here space to create as composers and to stand out as players, too.
I think that the Act II of Alas, mainly the humor scenes, demand much acting from your dancers, was that a challenge only this time or do you think of including this in your future ballets?
My dancers always have to act. In the show Sinceramente FGL or Sincerely FGL, dedicated to the centennial of the birth of great Spanish playwright and intellectual Federico García Lorca, they had to play the leading parts of his works: Yerma, Bernarda, Rosita, in sum, all of Lorca´s women. In Elementos, they played the parts of the Earth, Fire, Water, Wind and Humans. In Alas, they go from themselves to their souls and those of the others, so, whether drama or comedy, they always act and must work hard to be themselves or their characters, according to the requirements of each show or each staging.
I know that you have ballet training and that from our beginnings, flamenco has been a great passion, but, why that mixture, in my opinion marvelous mixture, of flamenco, traditional and folk Cuban dance, modern dance and ballet in the company, and that is more obvious, above all, in the ballet Alas?
It´s a matter of personal formation. I studied ballet, flamenco, Spanish dance, drama, in sum, many things; everything that I mix in my shows is my life. Luckily, the company is seeing us as a dance and show company rather than as a Spanish ballet company. All that mixture, which I prefer to call FUSION is each time more and more firm and structured, that is why, it is more evident for you in ALAS, and you know that the show is handmade but you don´t see the seam or needlework and that is good to us.
Last but not least, and putting the show aside a little bit, talk to me about your vocational formation and cultural community work, your work to train talented little and young girls.
That work is our essence. Cuban National Hero José Martí said: "Each man has the right to be educated and later, in exchange, the duty to contribute to educate others" and Martí is wise. What would happen to the future generations if we don´t comply with that?
So, what we are doing in terms of vocational formation is nothing more than fulfilling our duty and we do it with pleasure. It is hard to do, because you have a lot of responsibility, but is one of the most rewarding jobs of the world. Think of the fact that the dancers who today make up our Company were our students since they were five, seven or ten years old, and today they are professionals who dance on stage along with those who were their teachers.
Thank you very much again for having granted us this interview and I wish you great success now and in the future.
Thank you.

posted by Lilith @ 11:51 AM