ballet

He Hispanic Balletthe largest Latino cultural organization in the United States, celebrates the life of Mexican pioneer of feminism in his new work Sor Juanawhich will premiere next Thursday at a special gala on the most important dance venue in New York, the New York City Center.

Sor Juana tells through contemporary dance an “abstracted version” of the story of Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, a 17th-century Mexican nun who is “considered by many to be the first feminist in the Americas,” explains the Mexican-American choreographer Michelle Manzanales.

The figure of Sor Juana, an icon in Mexico, is not as well known in the United States, with the clear exception of Chicago, where the National Museum of Mexican Art has an annual festival in its name, reason why the piece fit with the mission of the Ballet Hispánico of divulge “the narratives of our diasporaLatina, he says.

In one of the last rehearsals in the studio, Manzanales declares herself “excited, honored, excited, nervous and with responsibility” while observing the group of dancers who have been dedicated, like her, body and soul to the piece since September of last year. , and they perform it for the umpteenth time with millimeter sensitivity.

“It is impossible to tell everything about someone in a short dance, so I selected pieces from her life. (Sor Juana) she had many talents, was an intellectual and loved to learn. She studied many subjects, she wrote not only poems, but also theater, opera, music…”, the choreographer maintains.

Interpreted by Gabrielle SprauveSor Juana delicately emerges and begins a hypnotic dance with another woman, incarnated by Elizabeth Roblesin which their gazes do not take off while they get closer and closer until they hold each other, back to back, inviting to wonder about the connection they share.

Sor Juana, who did not want to marry and after entering a convent gave herself over to a literary and poetic production that ranged from the religious to the profane, continues today to inspire those who seek to live “without shame or censorship” and that is reflected in the characters of the people with whom he was “close”, suggests the choreographer, without revealing.

A job for latinity

The company’s 14 dancers, with dark, mixed-race skin tones that reflect a melting pot, have not only had to learn the dance steps and link them to the music, but plunge into the rich legacy of the nunall this combined with his daily work and an international tour.

Accustomed to working with a fusion of flamenco, contemporary, modern and ballet, in this performance the group uses a uniquely contemporary dance language and, in addition, wears costumes that include the habit of the protagonist and that makes references to the colonial era of Mexico and the present.

the main executive and artistic director of the Ballet Hispánico, Eduardo Vilaro, who has been working with Manzanales for two decades, emphasizes that the work is the result of “a woman creating for another woman”, which shows how the dance company is leading the “changes” in a sector that is highly dominated by men.

Some changes that begin in the very essence of the organization, created in 1970 by Tina Ramírez and named a “cultural treasure” of the United States. “Enjoy, be proud and educate the public on what our Latino cultures are, what some people call ‘latinidad,'” summarizes Vilaro.

Sor Juana It will premiere next Thursday at the opening of a charity gala that commemorates Ramírez’s legacy and that will be dedicated to the Miranda family -collaborators of the Ballet Hispánico- and will be presented in two more performances, next Friday and Saturday.

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