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There is an infection at every level in this company, I would call it the "Alonso Port de Bras Condition" - without fail - lovely, fluid, singing arms. Barbara Garcia as Odette easily surmounted the difficulty of setting a mood, transitioning the audience from the busy business of getting settled at the theater to empathizing with the Swan Queen and her world of troubles. Joel Carreno as Prince Siegfried is a most impressive partner, giving the ballerina every support, flawlessly matching her lines, and responding to her portrayal of the role. Particularly memorable was her supported extension devant, then as he stepped away she very slowly - as slowly as gravity would ever permit - swooned backward, his arm catching her just in time. Drawing out this particular phrase was the perfect melding of emotion and music. Prince Siegfried's first variation was danced to music that I don't recall having heard before, Carreno acquitted himself well.

The corps de ballet showed off their fine schooling; every foot stretched, every movement matched. The Dance of the Four Cygnets was taken at a slightly quicker tempo, and would have been a credit to any company, anywhere.

Black Swan Pas de Deux, Choreography: Alonso/Ivanov/Petipa; Music: Tchaikovsky.

A red velvet backdrop with an impression of columns and palace interior was enough to segue into Odile's duplicitous depiction of her rival. Laura Hormigon's Odile was dressed in a black tutu with white scrollwork on the skirt and scattered red jewels. I am a foe of discus stiff tutus, and this was one of the stiffest. I think it detracts from the dancer's movement and hinders partnering, though I admit it didn't hinder this partnership. Hormigon teased, enticed and shamelessly laughed at Oscar Torrado's Prince Siegfried. While his partnering was solid, his variations were a bit shaky, I suspect more from nerves rather than lack of capacity. While the pas de deux was performed well, it was not particularly memorable. However, this is a difficult grand pas de deux to present without the rest of the ballet story around it.

Canto Vital (song of nature), Choreography: Azari Plisetski; Music Mahler - Rondo finale from 5th Symphony in C.

If ever there was a tour de force of male dancing this was it. Clad in the briefest of briefs the male body in bravura movement was on full display. And a fine display of strength, daring and fearless dancing it was. Set on an empty stage in front of a medium blue backdrop that in midstream turned blood red, the men were set free to relish their youth and power. The program notes describe this an "exploration of expressive possibilities within male dancing." I am not sure that I would agree, there was very little adagio, or legato movement. This is a exceedingly dynamic piece of work.
 

The basic structure was certainly ballet - almost every pas could be named within the ballet vocabulary, but the impulse was utter freedom. The men supported one another and at times various hints of specific classical ballets manifested themselves, but altogether the impulse was abandonment of restraint. However, such seeming freedom and abandonment could only be attained by marvelously schooled and skilled dancers and these dancers: Miguelangei Blanco, Romel Frometa, Javier Torres and Daniel Sarabia - were a sight to behold and remember. Watching the male body marrying strength to dynamic movement: jumps into and out of shapes and space, wanton throws, endless peerless pirouettes of every type and description, was a thrilling experience.

Even the few still moments of a body in a perfect arabesque, or a slow attitude turn, was a revelation of the sculptured musculature that resides beneath the tights and costume that usually hides it in classical ballets

Blood Wedding, Choreography: Antonio Gades, Music: Emilio de Diego.

Antonio Gades has always interested me through his two other works: Carmen and El Amor Brujo. He expresses the tension in a story in innovative ways. The stage was set minimally with the merest hint of a village house/doorway on each side. The social codes and moral standards could be a rural town anywhere, anytime, while at the same time it was utterly Spanish. The story is the triangle of groom, bride and "other" married man. The first two scenes are brief and set the mood of preparation for a marriage with underlying tension of bad omens. The groom carries a knife that is confiscated by his mother.
 

At the wedding the married "other" man easily seduces the bride (she is already enamored), and they secretly flee even as the rest of the town celebrates with the stirring rhythms of flamenco dance, music and chant. The jilted wife discovers the treachery. The groom's mother hands the knife back to her son and demands that he avenge his honor by killing the "other" man.

These classically trained ballet dancers transitioned entirely into flamenco catching the style, impulse and eclat of the genre. Heads, backs, chests, feet, flicked skirts, but especially those wonderful arms moved as if to the manner born of the flamenco dancer.

The final scene is the knife fight between the groom, Victor Gili, the "other" man, Octavio Martin, as the bride, Viengsay Valdes, laments. This was done almost entirely to silence - utter silence. And, it was done entirely in slow motion. It called for sustained strength of body and emotive capability. For many minutes the fight continued, parrying, thrusting, and defending until both men slowly sink and die of their wounds. The audience responded with held breath and complete involvement: not a cough, not a sigh, not a sound, until the final moment when applause burst like a storm.

As the company took their final bows, at second curtain opening, Prima Ballerina/Artistic Director/Founder Alicia Alonso stood supported by her dancers and received the even louder cheers of an already standing ovation. The love literally washed up over the stage and engulfed her. It was almost visible.