Review: Danza Contemporanea de Cuba at Theatre Royal, Newcastle

Feb 25 2010 by Barbara Hodgson, The Journal

MAKING its UK debut in Newcastle – an occasion which brought the nationals’ dance critics north – one of Cuba’s leading dance companies was clearly out to make an impact on Tuesday night.

Its 21 sassy and striking-looking dancers kicked off their tour with a triple-bill of such diverse parts there could be no doubting their technical brilliance. But the main impression was of the kind of passion, energy and vibe you’d imagine coming straight off the streets of Cuba.

Yet it opens silently and slowly in Demo-N/Crazy: bare-chested men and women, wearing only white briefs, move noiselessly on an empty stage, their fluid, sometimes angry, pairings broken only when one starts to sing – quite beautifully.

Then it’s all systems go, as dancers flood the stage. The next two and a quarter hours take in emotional changes of gear during a whirlwind mix of contemporary dance styles – balletic, acrobatic and a fusion of Afro Caribbean and Spanish – and music ranging from threatening and haunting to seductive and breezy.