PRESENTATION
The “Del Quivir” show was conceived as a tour of The Great Andalusian River and flamenco. It was el-Wadi al-Kabir to the Arabs and Betis to the Romans, it fathered civilizations and is intrinsically tied to Andalusia’s territory and history. The Guadalquivir’s water’s suggest ties to the Tartesian, Phoenecian, Roman, Arabic, Jewish and romani… They are echoes of the peoples that once here lived and in doing so left memories of their music and art in the midst of our rich and varied culture.
In “Del Quivir” we let our flamenco guitars dream whilst floating through the different lands the Guadalquivir has bathed for centuries. The river carves out its unique identity thanks to the contribution of the different lands it bathes and its tributaries. Much like the river, our flamenco show aims to sail through the different Andalusian provinces that have carved the essence of this, our art.
“Del Quivir” looks to be a metaphor of the passing of time, as well as the peoples and civilizations that make up our identity. At the same time, its objective is to celebrate life, nature and the richness of water in constant renewal and rebirth.
Our objective is to make this metaphor extensive to the river as a global sum of its different facets, such as its water, currents and cultures through music, song and dance. The “mis-en-scene” of our show consists of new hybrid flamenco combinations like using tango and bulería simultaneously or the gua-guanco– style tanguillos in the “…Y Sevilla” act.
Our Flamenco Company endeavours to provide the necessary dynamism to contribute to flamenco’s development, digging deep into its vast domains and looking at them from diverse and constructive viewpoints.
SYNOPSIS
The show is made up of seven parts that represent the different stages of the river and its passing through the different lands and cities.
Its birth in Cazorla, its journey through the land of Jaén, its arrival in Córdoba, the wrath of its storms and floods as remembered when passing through Sevilla and finally the arrival at the sea where it becomes an open doorway to the world.
THE BIRTH OF WATER
Water Springs from the mountain. The miracle of life. The birth of the river. A minimalist, profound and intimate melody. It builds up through rhythmical games evoking – like the dancing – the river as it grows and plays around with the pebbles like a child.
A sprinkling of clear water
Under a green pine tree
It was you. You sounded so good!
Antonio Machado
THE VOICE OF NATURE
The river grows in the solitude of the countryside. Grave and profound with pure flamenco roots, the taranta reminds us of the coutryside in Jaén and the dance speaks of the flowing of an increasingly large and generous river.
The river flows
amongst gloomy market gardens
and grey olive groves
along the happy countryside in Baeza.
Antonio Machado
ARABIC MEMORIES
A Turkish version of a Göksel Baktagir keyif submerges us in Córdoba, the city of three cultures and symbol of the Al-Andalus splendour, where the river also achieves its maturity and plenitude.
The Betis sings and re–sings its eternal song
in Latin and Ladino and Rabi and Arabic.
Gerardo Diego
THE WIND’S LAMENTS
The wind and the sadness of the austere melody tell us of the desolation of the Arab banishment, accompanied by a sorrowful and nostalgic dance.
The ships set sail amidst tears,
like a lazy convoy
whipped by the camel’s song.
Ben al-Labbana
STORM IN THE AIR
However, the river isn’t always sweet and tame; from time to time it shows us its strength and wrath. The veil will be symbolic of furious, vicious and domineering waters.
And the water goes cold
so as not to be touched.
Federico García Lorca
…AND SEVILLA
The stage is filled with imaginary water to remember the disaster that was the 1961 flooding which submerged the Alameda de Hércules and many other areas of the city.
The gua-guancó-rythmed tanguillo speaks of the spark and sense of humour with which the Sevillanos took the calamity.
River of Sevilla
how nice you look
amongst white galleys
and green branches!
Lope de Vega
THE OTHER WORLD
The river flows into the sea in Sanlúcar, its waters blend with those of the open sea and its infinite realms… But the great river doesn’t die there; the river’s delta becomes the door that Andalusia opened to a new world. The guajira dance is like a tribute to the airs the new world brought back to us and an anthem to freedom and the vast horizons that flamenco still brings us.
How often have I dreamt of you
in this flowered valley
which is the way to,
amongst golden orange groves,
the Guadalquivir and the sea!
Antonio Machado