REVIEW March 5, 2007

Purisimo: Flamenco Fest Delivers "Pure" Essence of Andalusian Art Form

The Sixth Annual Chicago Flamenco Festival started off with a bang

By Marla Seidell

In contrast to the very traditional performance led by David Perez were Oscar Valero and his ensemble of musicians, in another sold-out performance. One man dancing is enough, especially when it's the soulful, impassioned Valero who keeps the audience in the palm of his hand. Valero's expressiveness, combined with an almost trance-like intensity and continuous fervor made this performance outstanding. Yet the musicians — with an electric guitar — provided a bit of the New Flamenco component that did not in any way take away from the unadulterated flamenco experience of Valero and his company. The music was a fusion between modern and traditional — yet retaining the core pure element of flamenco — more of a street "fiesta" you have walked into than a ticketed concert. Completely unselfconscious and confident Valero communicates with the audience with little smiles — like when he took off his jacket or when he counted in time to the music with his fingers. By providing a bit of comic relief Valero breaks the flamenco seriousness for a moment, wrapping the entranced audience more tightly around his finger. The dancer and the music blend seamlessly together as one. Seeing a man dance with such raw, unabashed emotion reminds you what good dance is — something that draws you into its orbit, in this case into the world of the masterfully combined mixture of passion, fluidity and flawlessness.