REVIEW: From smooth to spirited, Malpaso Dance Company, presented by Celebrity Series of Boston, lights up a rhythmic nation
Malpaso Dance Company brings vibrancy to a crescendo saving the best for last.
Artistically directed by Osnel Delgado and co-founded by Delgado and Fernando Sáez, Malpaso Dance Company delivers a multi-faceted performance in three distinct pieces infusing jazz and a variety of international rhythms to create an upbeat, smooth, comical, and lively look at the many international cultures infused into Cuban dance.
Celebrity Series of Boston presented Malpaso Dance Company for three exclusive performances during one weekend only from January 17 to 18 live and in person at Emerson Paramount Center in Boston Massachusetts and is currently on tour. This energetic and layered production ran approximately 90 minutes with one intermission. Click here for more information, here for more on Celebrity Series of Boston’s upcoming events and here to find out where is Malpaso Dance Company’s next tour destination.
Simply staged and fueled by Manuel Da Silva’s moody haze and filtered spotlight, the production kicks off to a smooth start with Ephrat Asherie’s dynamic choreography featuring dance trio Esteban Aguilar, Osnel Delgado, and Esven González in street clothes and sneakers as they interconnect nimbly to Aldo López Gavilán ‘s piano-infused and ballet-inspired jazz rhythms. Floor..y Ando is a fresh, brief and low key piece offering a building transition with the pieces that follow which gradually transcends into rollicking, drumming, and pulsing rhythms.
Exploring a wide spectrum of cultures, Why You Follow is a long form dance by Ronald K. Brown that delves into upbeat, rolling and mellifluous rhythms from subtle to joyous. Clifton Taylor’s warm and multi-colored lighting featuring red embellished tones boasts an inviting quality with each step. Featuring a black backdrop and street clothes embossed by a red flourish, the full company joins together for a combination of freestyle, in sync, and competing moves clapping, sliding, leaping and spinning in bare feet to an array of memorable and catchy rhythms that span from music artists Zap Mama to The Heavy Quarterz. Breaking off into different groups, these infectious and groovy rhythms make a statement while bringing a brighter spring into each well crafted step by Esteban Aguilar, Daileidys Carrazana, Osnel Delgado, Dayron Dominguez, Esven González, Liz Marian Lorenzo, Laura Rodríguez, Iliana Solis, Jennifer Suárez Ramos, Carlos Valladares, and Greta Yero.
Each individual piece builds in mood and intensity and A Dancing Island serves as a grand finale with a bolder, playful, energetic and theatrical performance steeped in horn-infused rhythms and island sounds. Featuring a variety of warm, flirtatious and subtle comedic moments, A Dancing Island rides a string of lighthearted emotion demonstrated in trembling knees as well as fluttering, winding, and galloping dance moves. Featuring the full cast, this grand finale mixes the traditional with the contemporary in a string of sporadic humor, tender moments, Osnel Delgado’s tight choreography and playful intonations. Manuel Da Silva’s animated lighting design sparks to the rhythm while transforming into luminous blues, pinks, and reds. Featuring high socks, suspenders, and flowing skirts included in Guido Gali’s vibrant costume design, A Dancing Island delivers breezy charm in traditional Cuban dances to piano and horn-infused rhythms which includes spoken word and silent dance.
From subtle to catchy to exuberant, Malpaso Dance Company can have moments of repetition, but more often delivers uplifting charm and athletic precision to vivid and compelling cultural rhythms.
Celebrity Series of Boston presented Malpaso Dance Company for three exclusive performances during one weekend only from January 17 to 18 live and in person at Emerson Paramount Center in Boston Massachusetts. Click here for more information, here for more on Celebrity Series of Boston’s upcoming events and here to find out where is Malpaso Dance Company’s next tour destination.
