Flamenco in Normandy
After the long period of lockdown in the spring, summer turns out to be a breath of fresh air for all the performing artists forced to put their activities on hold.
This period allows the ¡ Ay Castaña ! Company to consider the creation of their new show. It organizes a week of residence at the Manoir du Mesnil de Bas in Normandy, a beautiful, calm and soothing place, ideal for working in peace.
The company’s two Flamenco dancers, Emilie Pathenay and Adèle Brugidou, choose to surround themselves with two outstanding musicians, Aniela Mikucka on vocals and Laurent Noel on guitar, to begin the creation of a new show during five days in a row. And this, under the watchful eye of Amélie Perez, manager of the ¡ Ay Castaña ! company.
The company’s creation process
As always in the company’s creation process, each participant is a force of proposal. It is the dialogue/listening between artists that allows the best ideas to emerge. The result is even more personal and sensitive.
The desire to share, multiplied by the period of lockdown, and the special connection that exists between these four artists are the main sources of inspiration for this flamenco creation.
How a day in residence unfolds
The main objective of this stay was to put together two pieces that the 4 artists of the troupe must perform together. The two dancers, Emilie Pathenay and Adèle Brugidou, had already worked together upstream on these two pieces. This saved time when putting the ensemble together on site with the musicians.
Each day, the artists start their work in the barn at 9:30 a.m. and stop for lunch at 1:30 p.m. After the meal, they continue to exchange on the theme of their creation while having tea or coffee. They resume around 3 p.m. in the barn and finish at 7 p.m. For the more adventurous, it’s time to swim in the Channel Sea before a good hot shower and a good dinner.
The exit from residence
In order to present the work done, the company organizes a residency outing in the beautiful barn of the Manoir in Normandy on the fourth day. An excerpt from this presentation is available here. About thirty people from the neighbourhood came to enjoy the show, which ended with a time of constructive exchanges between the artists and the public.
The prospect of the exit from residence made it possible to motivate the troupe even more, each moment together being very precious. The company presented a total show of about thirty minutes.
The next steps in creation
The last day of the residency is dedicated to the filming of various rushes by Amélie Perez, of some well-finished excerpts. These excerpts will then allow to edit a teaser video giving a taste of the show to organizations likely to program it next year.
The idea now is to meet again if the situation allows, to finalize the creation and launch the teaser, before Christmas.