El Danzón: Cuba’s gift, Mexico’s pride
By Leonardo Rosen March 7, 2008 San Miguel de Allende

Dance
Orquesta Danzonera de Tony Sánchez
Sun, Mar 9, 5pm
Jardín, free

Dance Workshop
Club de Danzón “Mercerina”
Tue, Mar 11, 6pm
Jardín, free

Until recently, a wonderful aspect of Mexican culture could not be found in San Miguel de Allende. Some natives said that it had existed here before, while others said that it never was here.

We don’t know for sure. I’m referring to a beautiful and elegant social dance called the danzón. People dance in this manner in zócalos, jardines, dance halls and community centers all over the country. It is my honor to inform you that the danzón has arrived in our town, thanks to the efforts of a small but growing group of enthusiasts who have been meeting since April 2007 at El Sindicato, Casa de las Artes Escénicas.

The danzón flourished in Cuba but has roots in England from 300 years ago. In the late seventeenth century, a version called the country dance became quite popular there. It then crossed the Channel to France with great success. The French called it contredanse and took it with them to their colonies in the West Indies. When African slaves in Haiti successfully revolted in 1780, French landowners fled to Cuba, taking the dance with them. In Cuba, it took on African rhythmic influences and became known as the contradanza and later, the danza. To meet the demands of a discerning dancing public, it continued evolving rhythmically and structurally. What is generally considered to be the first danzón, “Las Alturas de Simpson,” made its debut in Matanzas, Cuba in 1879. It was composed by an Afro-Cuban virtuoso, Miguel Faílde Pérez, revered to this day as the father of this musical form. The danzón swiftly made its appearance in Havana and in no time, the whole country was doing it.

The danzón may have arrived in Mérida, Yucatán as early as 1880, only a year after its debut in Matanzas. Now in Mexico, it made its way up the Gulf Coast, finding an adoring adoptive home in the seaport of Veracruz. A novel published in 1903 makes reference to the danzón already existing in Mexico City. It then spread throughout the republic, establishing itself as a Mexican social tradition.

During its continuing evolution, the danzón eventually gave birth partially to the mambo and then to the cha cha chá, which brings us through the forties and fifties. Today in 2008, strong groups of danzoneros are all over Mexico, with Veracruz and Mexico City the most important centers of activity. It is my opinion that Mexico is doing an even more successful job of preserving the danzón than Cuba. In any case, all serious danzoneros in this country feel a tremendous debt of gratitude to Cuba for this enduring cultural gift.

Thanks to the fifth annual Jornada de la Cultura Cubana, the people of San Miguel have the chance to see, hear and dance the danzón. Adolfo Rubio and Lupe Meza, producers of the Cuban festival, inform us that the highly regarded Orquesta Danzonera de Tony Sánchez will perform at a public dance. The Club de Danzón “Mercerina” will be there to greet you and dance with you. Believe me, the opportunity to experience a full danzón orchestra of this quality is not to be missed.

As a follow-up, the Club de Danzón “Mercerina” will present a danzón workshop in the Jardín. They will perform a choreographed work in progress and give a sample class for beginners, inviting the public to participate.

Danzón classes at beginner and intermediate levels, as well as a Sunday social dance, are offered at El Sindicato, Recreo 4. For information, please call El Sindicato at 152-0131, Leonardo Rosen at 154-5840 or David Corte at 044 (415) 107-7984. Final note: The danzón is suitable for people of all ages. Please join us!

Leonardo Rosen is a veteran musician and aficionado of Latin dance: danzón, Argentine tango, salsa, son montuno, cumbia, etc. At present, he teaches danzón at El Sindicato.

GravityWorks flies again
By Lulu Torbet

Dance
“Animas”
GravityWorks
Fri–Sat, Mar 7–8, 8pm
Fri–Sat, Apr 4–5, 8pm
Teatro Ángela Peralta
Mesones 82
150/100/50 pesos

“Animas” is the latest offering from the dazzling aerial dance troupe GravityWorks. The goal of all GravityWorks performances is to present a spectacle of sheer beauty—and “Animas,” which means spirit or soul, does just that. It is an immersive experience of color, music and graceful bodies, bathed in ever-changing light. Troupe founder Nisha Ferguson says that for the first time they are working with the idea of a story line for the performance.

This is now possible because two of the performers, Christian Baumgartner and Mariana Álarorre, are trained actors. “Animas” tells the tale of a journey from Paradise to Hell and back with a juggling clown Bombonini and his bumbling assistant, Bagelito providing comic relief.

GravityWorks, whose airborne members seem to fly through the air with the greatest of ease, is not your typical circus troupe.

The group was founded in Toronto in 1997 by Ferguson, who, along with her best friend, started learning circus arts as a means of fitness in her loft apartment. “We were terrible and had no strength at all. But slowly we improved and became stronger, teaching ourselves new tricks by watching Cirque du Soleil videos.” 

The little troupe grew and improved over the next five years. When Ferguson moved to Mexico with her family in 2001, she brought along a portable trapeze rig, one swath of silk fabric and two mats. Although she was concerned about finding new students with whom to share her passion, she almost immediately met people here who were anxious to learn.

Aerial dance is extremely demanding, but most of the members of GravityWorks discovered the circus arts in their late twenties and became hooked. Ferguson says that learning this new art and achieving levels of skill they thought were unattainable has helped them all reach goals in other aspects of their lives.

“We like to think of ourselves as ordinary people doing something extraordinary, people who have found our passion perhaps a bit late in life, but made it work,” she says.

GravityWorks, which has had members from all over the world, is based on the premise that anyone can join the circus, which should offer an open, fun, noncompetitive environment. “We enjoy training as much as performing.” In addition to founder Ferguson, the current mixed Mexican and Canadian troupe includes Eva Álvarez, Amanda Velazquez, Cecilia Corona, Mariana Álarorre and the one male member of the troupe, Christian Baumgartner. Héctor Juárez is the clown, Bombonini, and Ferguson’s son Joshua plays his assistant Bagelito.

The troupe trains four days a week for two to four hours each session on a rig in front of Ferguson’s house. They practice trapeze, lira (spinning hoop) and use what are called silks, the hanging swaths of fabric in which they climb and contort.

The dancers also perform on the ground, using colorful scarves and even fire, while the rigging is changed between acts. Soon they will be performing on a new device called the Rhonrad, a large gym wheel from Germany. Like many a struggling artistic cooperative, the troupe members do most of the behind-the-scenes work themselves. All are fully involved in the look and feel of the shows. They select the music, choreograph the routines, design and made the exotic costumes and do their own makeup.

Since late 2001, GravityWorks has performed at dozens of music festivals, charity benefits, private parties, at La Carpa, in theaters, art galleries, open-air forums and hotels, both in San Miguel and around the state of Guanajuato. Since Z Club’s opening in August 2007, they often perform there on Saturday nights. The nightclub is located behind the Immigration building.

Tickets are available at the Peralta box office.

Photographer and painter Lulu Torbet had a graphic design studio in New York before being lured into the writing game. She is the author or ghostwriter of over 30 books, mostly crafts, psychology and memoir.

“Canastera” Flamenco in Mexico
By Casilda Madrazo

Dance
“Canastera”
Thu, Mar 13, 7pm
Teatro Ángela Peralta
Hernández Macías 62

“Canastera” (basket maker) is a flamenco performance of recent creation and scarce interpretation. Its place in the world of art is still ambiguous but its name gives it a certain concept. When we listen, it makes us think of the basket-making gypsies of Andalucía, or of people who interlace the palm of the baskets with their hands and walk with their companions in search of a different destiny.

A particular way of life, which inspired Mari Paz Covarrubias and myself to create a work of flamenco dance, located in her country: Mexico.

Teresa, the character in the story, is a basket maker who arrives in Mexico City to sell her baskets. 

All encounters and experiences during her journey are seen on the stage through choreography sequences that recall the different voices of being.

The story develops over 50 minutes, from the moment Teresa arrives to the city to the site she chooses to sell her baskets. The choreography and music create the perception that it is a real-life experience.

Guitar player Gabriel Elizondo was in charge of the musical composition and direction, along with Mónica del Águila playing the cello. Kin Sánchez plays the second guitar and Armando Tovar the percussions.

The lights and scenery are master work of Mario Mendoza and the costumes are a creation of Carla Fernández. Mari Paz Covarrubias and myself perform the play.