Alba
“Adela, the youngest daughter of Bernarda Alba, died a virgin.
The fact that she was having an affair with Pepe, who was supposed to marry her sister… didn’t matter.
The fact that Martirio confessed to the family only out of jealousy, because she, also, was in love with him… didn’t matter.
The fact that María Josefa, Bernarda’s mother, was lucid enough to tell them how repressed they were… didn’t matter.
And the fact that they lived in a world that, outside their house, was ruled by men… that… they couldn’t change”
Choreographed by Lucía Piquero
Original Music by Alberto García
16 minutes
Technical Requirements; Black box theatre, or room with several entrances and exits; Side and top lights, green, red, and lavender/blue colours. (Please note that tech requirements are only given as a guideline and you can contact us with any proposal for other circumstances).
To see a clip of Alba, click here
Reviews of Alba:
Cloud Dance Festival 6th December 2009. By Michelle Harris
Diciembre Dance Group opened the event with The House of Bernarda Alba, a dark tale exploring female repression, loss of innocence and the harbouring of secrets and lies for the sake of a family’s reputation. From the outset choreographer Lucía Piquero plays with the weighty themes of religion, tradition and ritual, with seven female dancers entering the stage modestly, heads scarfed and bowed, amidst two long tables covered in white cloth. Symbolic gestures, deep womanly plies in second and long leans are combined with smooth seamless dancing, which finely interpret the sharpness and stresses of Alberto Garcia’s original Flamenco styled melody. In fact the overall stylisation and physicality of the dance often feels familiarly Graham in nature. Refreshingly, each dancer also attacks the choreography with their own individuality, keenly expressing the passion, shame and burdens that Bernarda Alba and her daughters are made to bare. However, despite such hardships and eventual tragic endings one can’t help feeling that Piquero wants us left remembering that more than just victims, these women are courageous and strong.
Cloud Dance Festival 6th December 2009 By Catherine Hooper
The show opened with a dance interpretation of Federico Garcia Lorca’s The House of Bernarda Alba. An ambitious undertaking by Diciembre Dance Group to relay the complex tragic plot the Spanish playwright is known for, especially with out resorting to the facility of language. However Diciembre successfully transport us to the world of the play; a rural Spanish village, though the clever use of design elements. Hand fans, a common Spanish accessory, were used not only in the choreography but to add to the soundscape of Alberto Garcia’s score. The flicking, fanning and spreading of the fans were combined to create a montage of sound, immediately locating the performance aurally as well as visually. Choreographer Lucía Piquero also utilized the rhythms of the Spanish language, adding to the rich, woven experiential element of ‘Bernarda Alba’. The choreography effectively communicates the lead characters; the strong committed movement of the austere and oppressive mother Bernarda Alba, yet the tragic story of Adela, the youngest daughter is told through delicate but passionate performance.
