Dance Review: 'Intimo'

Rafael Amargo and his company gave a sizzling hot flamenco show.

By ORA BRAFMAN
flamenco feet 88 (photo credit: )
flamenco feet 88
(photo credit: )
Rafael Amargo and Company (Spain) Intimo Suzanne Dellal Tel Aviv July 21 Rafael Amargo and his company gave a sizzling hot flamenco show, the kind that can happen only in the presence of a crowd of true appreciators. And it surely happened at Suzanne Dellal, with a rare dialogue between the stage and the audience. There were stamping feet, clapping hands, guitars, electric flute, swirling dresses and buckets of sweat - and the crowed shouted for more. Amargo, a charismatic dancer, is not that young anymore and he is a bit heavy around the waist, but boy oh boy, this man rocks! He is a dancing machine with every fiber of his body and soul. He "speaks" the traditional flamenco moves fluently, but at his best, he uses that discipline only as a point of departure. He gives up on the rigid postures used by purists, lets his hair down and sails freely and wildly, deriving pleasure as well as giving it. They say that the body doesn't lie, and during the performance, all the participants proved it. Each one of the dancers not only danced, but actually became dance itself. Amargo was accompanied by four magnificent female dancers - a duet by two of them dressed in red was a true tour de force of flamenco flame, the kind that gets right under your skin. A fine group of musicians kept up the beat, mixing traditional rhythms with jazz and contemporary music, making the audience members dance in their seats. For this tour, the dancers brought along a guest Yiddish singer - Martha Goldstern - who managed to fit in, against all odds.