Fuenteovejuna

A bit of background…

Fuenteovejuna is the version of the play by the same name by Lope de Vega performed by Antonio Gades. The heart of the story revolves around the collective struggle of a people against the tyranny of a despot, symbol of despotism and the immovable privileges of ruling classes. According to co-writer Caballero Bonald, “the themes addressed and the general sense of Fuenteovejuna overlapped explicitly with the artistic language and civic conduct of Gades himself”. The light of Velázquez’s paintings, the theater of the Golden Age, the enormous richness of Spanish folk dance, are all tools that Gades uses with his characteristic mastery to tell, without a single word, the events of the real protagonist of the ballet, the village of Fuenteovejuna“. The spectator feels reflected in a production that will thrill and excite all audiences.

A masterful mix of the cult and the popular, in this fascinating show Gades underscores what would became his living will, his confidence in the richness and expressive power of Spanish dance in its fullest scope: folk dance, stylized dance and, of course, flamenco.