Theater Online - New York Theater Reviews

 Escucha pueblo que andas   /   Listen, people who walk
por naciente libertad   /   towards newborn freedom
no será este pueblo libre   /   these people will not be free
sin aire que respirar.   /   without fresh air to breathe.

—Francisco Moreno Galván—

Performing for a very limited engagement at The Players Theater in the West Village, Omayra Amaya Flamenco Dance Company reinterprets part of Spanish culture in their performance of “La Sobremesa”. Referring to the after-dinner hour, when family and friends linger to have coffee or discuss the recent topics, Omayra takes this everyday event and translates the emotions, actions, and news of the day into music, movement, and dance.

Much like the tempo in flamenco itself, ‘La Sobremesa” develops slowly and eventually launches into a dervish of footwork and hand movements. Appropriately, the performance opens around a dinner table, and as the performers begin to pass around a copy of the evening paper*, the story and choreography of “La Sobremesa” begins.

Altogether the performances were solid and expressed a fury of emotions. Most seemed to come off as slightly political, but that could just be this critic projecting the current climate onto a dance performance. Not surprising, Omayra Amaya and her colleague, José Moreno presented some amazing technique, though in the beginning it lacked the passion they worked so hard to portray; unquestionably, these two performed in the flamenco tradition with more heart than I have seen in most, but it took at least the first half of the performance for either of them to get to a point where the real artistry of their work began to unfold (not something one can afford in a 100 minute production).

Musical performances by Roberto Castellon, Jr., Amparo Heredia Reyes, and Ruben López Jesús, enlivened the evening and helped make “La Sobremesa” complete. The voices of Amparo and Rubén pulled at one’s emotions, while their impact was driven home by the sounds of Gonzalo Grau on the piano. Varying the style of their work, and alternating stances with the change of each scene, provided the audience a fresh image and kept the background interesting. With a colorful light plot and the intimate setting to boot, these elements all made for a superb performance.

While “La Sobremesa” may have been for only a few short evenings, I look forward to future performances from the Omayra Amaya Flamenco Dance Company and wish them continued success.