2007 Interview with Yaelisa, Emmy Award-winning dancer on the new production of "Blood Wedding".

SHOTGUN PLAYERS PRESENTS
BLOOD WEDDING
BY FEDERICO GARCIA LORCA

TRANSLATED BY MICHAEL DEWELL & CARMAN ZAPATA DIRECTED BY EVREN ODCIKIN

CHOREOGRAPHY BY YAELISA
ORIGINAL MUSIC BY DAVID MCLEAN AND YAELISA

The Ashby Stage

I'm pleased to share this interview with Yaelisa, award winning dancer, Artistic Director of Yaelisa y Caminos Flamencos and Artistic Director of The New World Flamenco Festival, presented each year at the Irvine Barclay Theater in Irvine, California. While it would have been great to have gotten together with Yaelisa to have a dialogue over a cup of coffee, ...or rioja... we were just too busy and couldn't do that. The interview was a set of questions sent through email and her reply.

Jason Engelund

Hi Yaelisa. Thanks for taking the time to tell our readers about Shotgun Player's new production of "Blood Wedding".

Yaelisa

Thank you for the opportunity, Jason. And for supporting flamenco in this community.

Jason

Frederico Garcia-Lorca was an activist, a poet and more and he also had a role in supporting and working with flamenco. In 1922 Lorca along with Manuel de Falla worked with the Granada Deep Song Flamenco Contest, a historic event bringing both awarness to flamenco and a collection of legendary performances. Lorca also wrote about the illusive concept of "duende" available in the great little book "In Search of Duende", and to all our readers I highly recommend buying this book. I use it for my lectures as well as inspiration for my artwork. Lorca wrote his play "Blood Wedding" in 1932, the first play of a trilogy. Yaelisa, can you tell us a bit about the play?

Yaelisa

I first saw Saura's "Blood Wedding" film in the early nineties and became more interested in Lorca after that. The play itself is very brilliant and intense, with the themes of class distinction, societal repression, sexual repression woven into a story that is very primitive: the struggle between what the heart and soul wants, the passion and intensity humans' desire, against what our family and societal obligations sometimes inflict upon us. We know something is bad for us, but we want it anyway!

Jason

What is flamenco's role in this particular production?

Yaelisa

Evren came to an ODC show and then called me to discuss working together; when we talked I realized he truly wanted to add some authentic elements of flamenco movement and music to the play to advance the story. He saw me perform my Tarantos and wanted something like that in the play; Evren is very musical and though he doesn't know flamenco well, he knew what he wanted. We began to discuss how to incorporate flamenco elements into the production. I knew that in 8 weeks of rehearsals we could not train actors to perform choreographies but I could work along the lines of stylizing these elements. I also felt the challenge because the play is basically almost a musical theater piece, and Evren wanted music and melodies set to the poetry and textual "songs" already in the play. Because of my experience and also because I sing a little, I worked with him and David McLean on deciding on song styles that would work with the poetry....it was quite challenging because many of them do not have the normal cadence or structure of flamenco songs. I even composed a few melodies for the songs, which I really enjoyed doing. Many of the cast are trained singers and they learned the "songs" in a less flamenco style, but following the compas of a certain style. For example, the entire cast sings the salida for Alegrias during the Wedding scene, and they sing it in compas! We taught two singers to sing a Cana, there's even a Peteneras in the play.

Jason

What drew you to working on the project?

Yaelisa

Lorca drew me to it! I love a challenge and Evren convinced me I could actually fit this into my schedule. He actually wanted me to read for the part of the Moon, but I could not have done based on the fact that I'm not an actress nor could I have done 6 straight weeks of shows!

Jason

Can you tell us about your approach to choreographing the production? Were there certain themes that you focused on?

Yaelisa

My choreographic contribution to the production lies mostly as a flamenco movement specialist. There is no large choreography persay, but my work consisted of working closely to create a movement style for the Moon, using the dance movement to interpret her character during a very intense monologue. I worked on various scenes with the actors on gesture, authenticity and character interpretation: for example, simply helping a character use a given movement to assist in interpretation. It was really alot of fun to work with actors, though it was not the first time I had done it. I also did choreograph the fight sequence between the two principal characters, and that was really fun....it was designed more as a dance fight and I like how it turned out. Evren and I worked sometimes hand in hand on many scenes, and he was very generous and open to ideas and really worked in tandem very well. Having run a dance company and major flamenco festival for years, I have alot of ideas and Evren really used my input and we discussed ideas together alot....my other important role was to work with David closely on some musical ideas and on composition decisions. My knowledge of cante came in very handy, because this production is quite complex and the play really requires a bonifide composer. I think we did a good job. David actually plays throughout the entire production and really had his work cut out for him.

Jason

Flamenco over the years has become an art form that's used in a variety of ways. From traditional fiestas, to tablaos, large stage productions, and as with this an element of theater. Any thoughts?

Yaelisa

If flamenco is produced in all of the above ways, its because its such a rich, noble art form that deserves the grandest of productions on the biggest (or smallest) of stages. I think we need more flamenco presented with integrity and respect, and wth a deep understanding of its roots and culture.

Jason

What do you find about the play that makes it stand the test of time?

Yaelisa

Well, the universal themes found in this and other works by Lorca. Eighty years after his death, Lorca's writings are still being interpreted and incorporated into flamenco by major artists. In fact, he has become part of the flamenco lexicon and I think always will be, because he was the most flamenco of poets, and because he tried to elevate flamenco as an art form at a time when Gypsies were being persecuted or hunted down. So Lorca himself may be a hero to flamencos.

Jason

The play has been produced all over the world and was first translated into film in 1932 and again in the dance film by Carlos Saura in 1981. For those of us who haven't seen the Shotgun Player's production yet, can you give us some clues as to what we'll see in this version and what you think flamenco aficionados will enjoy about it?

Yaelisa

I think those interested or studying flamenco should expose themselves to anything that has to do with the culture of flamenco: literature, travel, poetry, especially the cante. I think this production does a very honorable job, without an enormous budget, of representing Lorca's work. Alot of my students have seen it and really liked it....you'll enjoy it and its an exposure to one of the most important Spanish poets of all time.

Jason

Thanks again Yaelisa and we'll all look forward to seeing the production.

Yaelisa

Thanks to you, Jason.