ENSEMBLE ESPANOL
In two alternating programs, Ensemble Espanol exhibits some spirited dancing in a setting more accessible than flamenco’s native Adalusia. The company, under the direction of Dame Libby Komaiko Fleming (she was awarded her title by King Juan Carlos I in 1982), has been in residence at Northeastern Illinois University since 1976.
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The guest artists, many in return engagements, are particularly strong this year. Singer Maria Elena “La Cordobesa” outdoes herself, singing powerfully and with dramatic flair. Singer Paco Alonso joins the dancers in more than bit roles, notably in Alma de Aragon/Jota, which also features the Junior Ensemble Espanol. The three guitarists (Luis Primitivo, Pedro Cortes, and Mateo) provide mellifluous, impassioned musical interludes as well as excellent accompaniment for the dancers.
The only dance performed in both programs is the effervescent Alma de Aragon/Jota, and I can understand why. The junior ensemble, in black, white, and brilliant reds, look infectiously happy against a backdrop of mountains. Leaping and turning and wearing big smiles, they make this taxing dance look effortless. But just as in the elaborate dance numbers of the old Busby Berkeley musicals, more is never enough. The senior ensemble members come dancing out in front of them, in floral gold and black lame versions of the others’ costumes (this brilliant conceptualization must be the work of Alonso, who designs and sews most of the ensemble’s costumes in consultation with Fleming). Singer Alonso himself comes out next, crooning to Fleming, who wears a costume even more resplendently sequined than the others. By this time the stage is a mass of movement, though it never looks cluttered–Renaissance man Alonso has also done the choreography. The festive dancing continues, the performers moving in continually smaller and tighter circles, still doing the jota as the curtain closes before them. All that’s missing is the overhead shot.
