Both for dance neophytes and experts. El Dansa Metropolitana, the festival that, driven by the Barcelona Institute of Culture (Icub), has managed in six editions and a pandemic in between to involve fifteen municipalities in the area of influence of the capital, seeks to democratize this art and bring it to places where there were none, but also act as a prescriber of the genre on an international scale. And it seems that he is getting it.
Badalona, Barcelona, Cornellà, El Prat, Esplugues, Granollers, L'Hospitalet, Sabadell, San Cugat, Santa Coloma, Terrassa and Viladecans host 118 shows (which will be seen in 181 performances, of which up to a hundred are free), plus 29 films, 50 parallel activities and 42 educational ones. There are a total of 330 activities in one hundred spaces in 12 municipalities. That could be fifteen if it were not for the fact that the imminence of municipal elections advises prudence when adding municipalities at the last minute.
And the program could not be more diverse and transversal: it includes the names most dedicated to betting on the future, be it flamenco, urban or neoclassical dance. And contrary to what could happen, not therefore covering the event is less pressing. Among the great ballets that landed from abroad is Acosta Danza, Béjart Ballet Lausanne, Ballets Jazz de Montréal and Ballet National de Marseille, and a large array of Latin American companies, as this is where this 6th edition of Dansa Metropolitana focuses, with artists such as Marco Layera, Marina Otero or Poliana Lima.
The inauguration will take place on March 9 -the festival lasts until the 26th- with the company of the Portuguese Marco da Silva Ferreira at the Mercat de les Flors. And next door, at the Institut del Teatre, Delrevés will perform. Because national names of great power and personal stamp also exist: Rocío Molina brings her entire Trilogy on the guitar; the Kukai Dantza perform with their original proposal, and Alessandra García and Alberto Cortés are also present, as well as local companies such as Sol Picó, Guy Nader and Maria Campos, Cia. Thomas Noone Dance, IT Dansa, Pere Faure or the Brodas Bros.
"There is no other festival in Spain as large and of such quality as this one. By impact, by number of cities and by number of shows it even surpasses Madrid en Danza, which since it merged with the Teatros del Canal has lost its festival character. And Dansa València, for its part, focuses on national creators", says Cesc Casadesús, a member of the large artistic commission that designs the festival, in his case representing Barcelona City Council. Thus, the originally known as the Quinzena Metropolitana de Dansa and now called the Metropolitan Dance has become the star event in Spain and on a European scale is beginning to attract attention.
"Yes, on a national scale there is no color, with that epicenter that is the Mercat de les Flors and the alliance with Terrassa and Sant Cugat, which gives it great relevance. From Europe they wonder what is happening here, what is this that we are programming Because it is an eclectic festival that does not seek to bring only the most powerful and richest of dance, that is already done by the Mercat season. This festival wants to expand and take dance where there is none. And the way of programming is quite unique because it takes advantage of everyone's knowledge. The Lyon Biennial would perhaps be another example of a dance festival that has an impact on the territory, but there is not much more in this sense on the European continent", warns Casadesús, director of the Festival Grec and former manager of the Mercat.
In the midst of this enormous offer, what shows would make up a 'top five', according to Casadesús himself? A prescriptive list aimed at the general public would include a large ballet, a Latin American proposal, a rising young choreographer and some flamenco.
"My list would be headed by Rocío Molina, any of the three shows, although my favorite is the first; Wang Ramirez as a young choreographer [the company formed by the choreographer Honji Wang and the French-Spanish Sébastien]; Marco Layera from Teatro La Re-Sentida ( as a Latin American proposal); a more contemporary Ballet National de Marseille, or the Ballets Jazz de Montréal, which puts on a proposal in Sant Cugat with Crystal Pite, another must-see, and finally, to name a few from Catalonia, an essential would be the Cia Guy Nader and Maria Campos.
For experts in the field, the five essentials according to Casadesús would be Gisèle Vienne, "what she proposes seems interesting and novel to me"; Anton Lachky, in the Sat!; Maria Moreno, as one of the great renovators of flamenco; Àngel Duran, because his next proposal arouses interest, and then there is Joefina Gorostiza, the Argentinian creator, in the Principal de Terrassa, which arouses my curiosity". And I would add a street performance or the Liminar series, in dialogue with architecture For example, Jordi Galí in the Margarita Xirgu square".
The Dansa Metropolitana has co-produced a dozen shows this time with the aim of supporting the new creation. This is how they have given support to Lorena Noal with Hotel Col·lectiu Escènic, Claudia Mirambell, Proyecto Larrua and the aforementioned Àngel Duran, among others.
