On Thursday nights this summer, Omayra Amaya and her company are whipping up a flamenco fiesta with "Jueves Flamenco" at the Players Theater in Greenwich Village. A recent show kicked off with a high-spirited, humorous rumba, "En la Ciudad de Nueva York," which had the lithe Amaya trading rhythms with singer Curro Cueto and guitarist Roberto Castellon.
They were joined by dancer and percussionist Jose Moreno, whose delicate taconeo (foot work) seemed to merge flamenco spirit with American tap. Wearing a slinky, knit dress, Amaya was all feline grace to Moreno's masculine bulk. The jazzy beats reminded us that rumba is the meeting place where flamenco and Afro-Cuban rhythms mingle their musical DNA, no questions asked.
Omayra Amaya is the great-niece of Carmen Amaya, who took America by storm in the 1940s and 50s and is perhaps the greatest flamenco dancer of the 20th century. Fittingly, Carmen was one of the first artists to popularize the rumba flamenca. Even more fittingly, and by bizarre coincidence, Omayra is now performing at the very same off-Broadway theatre in the Village where Carmen danced 51 years ago.
When she originally booked the theater, the younger Amaya was unaware her ancestor had commanded the same stage for her last American performances in June of 1962.
The Players Theater on MacDougal Street is the perfect space for a flamenco show. With 250 seats, it's intimate, yet not too small. And there's not a bad seat in the house. Last Thursday, many of New York's flamenco crowd were in attendance. Calling out " Olé!" and other words of encouragement, they provided the essential ambiente. The artists responded accordingly, improvising inspired bits-most notably in a long soleá por bulerías that seemed to wax and wane like a flame fanned by the wind.
Dressed in brilliant red, with crimson flowers in her dark hair, Amaya went from solemnity to ardor to vehemence. What began as an austere lament built to a frenzy of claps and stamps that seemed to overtake the night. At last Amaya walked to the front of the stage and threw up her arms in a gesture of extremity, making way for Castellon's modernist guitar riff that fell finally into driving rhythm.
The show concluded with the traditional, humorous Gypsy bulerías, offering each performer the chance to strut his stuff. Even guitarist Castellon did a turn, snapping his fingers and doing the robot walk. Then the group coalesced into a "Blow-Up" style pantomime in which they tossed an invisible ball from player to player, then out into the audience.
Flamenco has come a long way from the days when Carmen Amaya first crossed the Atlantic. But in the hands of Omayra and her troupe, it remains a living thing, full of twists, turns and surprises. "Jueves Flamenco" is a show you shouldn't miss. It's running every Thursday through July 25th (except July 4th ).
Jueves Flamenco: Summer 2013 - Omayra Amaya Flamenco Dance CompanyThe Players Theater - 115 MacDougal Street, NYC - 212-475-1449
Members of the cast:Omayra Amaya, dancer
Roberto Castellon, guitarist and composer
Curro Cueto, singer
José Moreno, dancer & percussionist
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