Bale de Rua Dance Company presents the Baila Brazil show in London, from 5 to August 15 at Royal Festival Hall
By Gabriela Lobianco
Balé de Rua Dance Company is on international tour with Baila Brazil, a mixture involving the musical beat of drums, African rhythms and street dance, straight from the slums of Uberlândia, a city in the State of Minas Gerais, south-eastern Brazil, to the world.
The attraction was highly praised for its debut in Australia with good acceptance of both critics and the public, with sold out presentations at the Sydney Opera House. “It is a play with a vision of our land, but with no stereotypes,” says the director of the company, Fernando Narduchi to Brasil Observer. For him, the sensuality of our people will always exist. However, he continues, “first of all the dancers enact for the art, focusing on our roots and culture with exuberance.”
The group performs in London from 5 to 15 August, on the main stage of the Southbank Centre, the Royal Festival Hall as part of the Festival of Love. The call came just after the performances in Australia and, although it is not the first time that the artists are in the British capital, there are always expectations a new performance will be shown. “We hope the audience likes this show,” adds Narduchi.
With unique choreography by Marco Antonio Garcia representing classics of MPB, samba, hip hop, break and contemporary dance, the troupe has 14 professionals among dancers (samba dancers, b-boys and capoeiristas) and musicians (percussionists and a set with keyboard, bass and cavaquinho), as well as the singer Alexia Falcão. “The difference this time is that we have a live band, with much more than drums,” says Narduchi.
The eight-hour daily rehearsals are intense and require a lot of dedication – the result is a 1h20 long performance. The principal attraction, however, is the interaction with the audience, invited to dance.
Narduchi says he is not intimidated by the interpretation that Europeans can do to the work. “The interpretation is subjective, but we are artists.” According to him, the presentation of another show in Lyon, men dancers at one point came on the scene with dresses, undressing on the way. “I was amazed that no one interpreted it as something erotic but as something integral and sensitive part of the show,” he says.
HISTORY
With over 20 years of experience, the artists combine in their performances the street dance language with the modern ballet. “Balé de Rua was born in 1992 with a proposal to create art as an act of courage and independently” explains Narduchi.
In 2007, the director and founder of the company created the Cultural Centre Balé de Rua, a leader of teaching and inclusion of children and adolescents, with more than 200 students from various districts of Uberlândia trained in free classes. Due to lack of resources, the centre closed in 2014, but the dance company remains firm.
From this project, others emerged as the Comunidade Ativa, which emerged from the Novos Talentos, developed by Balé de Rua. Thus, the outskirts of Uberlândia invade urban centers and provide a new direction in the life of young artists.
The repertoire is quite varied, and so the company has in the curriculum 13 countries and 45 Brazilian cities visited. Fernando Narduchi recalls he was in the Fringe, in Edinburgh. “We were there in 2008 and spent one month. Beautiful city and beautiful festival.”
Finally, the director asks me how was the weather in London: “Is it too cold?”. The disappointment was great when he discovered that on the day of our interview, via Skype, I was in Brazil. “You live there and are already used to it, but I think I’d better take warm clothes. The evening certainly cools, from what I remember,” he laughs relaxed. The London summer is relatively soft for sure but the temperature is going to rise with Baila Brazil.
BAILA BRAZIL
When: 5 to 15 August
Where: Royal Festival Hall
Tickets: £38 £28 £15
Info: www.southbankcentre.co.uk
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