Gala de Andalucia's Fluid Flamenco Footwork

Flamenco doesn't get any better than Friday's Gala de Andalucia that closed the Sixth Annual Flamenco Festival in Lisner Auditorium. Festival fans have come to expect all-star lineups, but the five Gala artists, headlined by Merche Esmeralda and Manolo Marin, were more like a mini hall of fame.

Backed by a superb musical ensemble, they pulled off one tour de force after another.

The youngest dancers, Adela and Rafael Campallo, opened with the lyrical "Paso a Dos," crafting a filigree of sinuous torsos and circling arms. She later showed off her bravura footwork in a sultry seguirilla , but always calibrated it to her eloquent upper body. He, a natural charmer with a reserve of rock-star flash, also fired stunning rounds of footwork throughout his alegrias without distracting from the mode's grace.

Esmeralda's brooding solea recalled the earlier version she performed in 1987 at the Kennedy Center as the Spanish National Ballet's guest artist. If anything, her elegant line seems more dramatic; just seated in a chair she was mesmerizing. A skilled interpreter, as she glided, twisted and stamped through her passion and fury, train swirling, fringe flying, she let her emotional range unfold in all its extravagance. Javier Baron chose the same dark mode, electrifying it with nuanced footwork of endless complexity. Breaking with tradition, he inserted violin accompaniment by Alexis Lefevre, who initially strummed the instrument like a guitar and then played with such intensity his bow started to fray. A supercharged exchange between dancer and violin made for a surprise coda.

Only Marin could follow such acts. Short but powerful, and magnificently erect, he delved into a tientos of brilliant simplicity, not much longer than a cameo. He topped it off with a tangos, flamenco's sassiest mode and one that Marin, now 70, insists best suits a man with some mileage on him.

The vivacious Esmeralda joined in the fun that escalated through the company's finale into something beyond excitement, and a delighted audience responded with a standing ovation.

-- Paula Durbin