Félix Lope de Vega (1562-1635), the great playwright of the Spanish Golden Age, wrote a baroque play in three acts called “Fuenteovejuna” (The Sheep Well) after a village in the Córdoba region. It dramatises the revolt of peasants against their tyrannical lord. This Commander, scornful, violent and devoid of honour, is assassinated. But the piece ends with a reconciliation between the sovereign power and the villagers, and a new lord is appointed. Here Lope de Vega seems to be trying to show the value of “social coherence” and solidarity between the weakest. The piece has survived down the centuries and many agree that it can be interpreted in a variety of ways. The theme of the story is that of the collective and united struggle of a population against the tyranny of a despot, represented by the character of Fernan Gomez, Commander of the Order of Calatrava, symbol of despotism and the irremovable privileges of the Andalusian ruling class. The people watch helplessly all the excesses and abuses of the arrogant and lustful Commander, who intends to impose his will on all the inhabitants of Fuenteovejuna, beginning with the village's representative and finishing with the peasants and shepherds. The play makes expressive use of dance, music and lighting to portray the classic theatre of Lope de Vega, a key figure of Spain's Golden Age.

Source : Maison de la Danse programme

Antonio Gades was born in 1936 in Elda in the province of Alicante. At the age of eleven, he left school to look for work. He learned the ropes of the adult world in the backs of photographers' shops, as an apprentice toreador, errand boy and apprentice in the studios of a newspaper. He used his first wages to pay for dance lessons. In 1952 he was introduced to Pilar Lopez, a great figure in flamenco, and a year later, his name appeared high up on bills the world over. He always considered Pilar Lopez to be his real teacher. In 1960 he left Pilar Lopez to direct the choreography of Ravel's “Boléro” at the Rome Opera House. Around the same time, he composed a piece for the Spoleto Festival, then took on the duties of a principal dancer, choreographer and ballet master at La Scala, Milan. He temporarily gave up flamenco and had the opportunity to collaborate with classically-trained artists: Anton Dolin, Carla Fracci and Giancarlo Menotti. He then went to the Actors Studio and stayed briefly in Paris. Returning to his homeland, he formed his ballet company. He first tasted success in Barcelona and went on to perform all over the world. Gades became the favourite artist of Catalan intellectuals in the 1960s. People like Tapies, Miro and Brossa were instrumental in his engagement for the New York Universal Exhibition, which was his moment of glory.

In 1978 he was appointed director of the Spanish National Ballet, a post which he left shortly afterwards to form the new Antonio Gades company, which brought together Cristina de Hoyos, Juan Antonio Jimenez, Pilar Gardenas, Enrique Estevez and the composer and guitarist Emilio de Diego. In his very contemporary approach to flamenco, he faithfully follows the trail blazed by Vicente Escudero, considered by Gades to be the indisputable master. He staged “Bodas de Sangre” (Blood Wedding), a ballet inspired by Federico Garcia Lorca's work, and brought to the cinema by the celebrated director Carlos Saura. This collaboration with the film-maker was renewed with “Carmen”, for which they co-wrote the ballet and the film. This ballet was premièred at the Théâtre de Paris and the film won two prizes at the Cannes Festival. He has danced “Carmen” over 1,500 times (250 times a year) and “Noces de Sang” almost as many times.

Source: Antonio Gades Foundation

More information : valprod.fr

Author, filmmaker and video artist Charles Picq (1952-2012) entered working life in the 70s through theatre and photography. A- fter resuming his studies (Maîtrise de Linguistique - Lyon ii, Maîtrise des sciences et Techniques de la Communication - grenoble iii), he then focused on video, first in the field of fine arts at the espace Lyonnais d'art Contemporain (ELAC) and with the group « Frigo », and then in dance.
   On creation of the Maison de la Danse in Lyon in 1980, he was asked to undertake a video documentation project that he has continued ever since. During the ‘80s, a decade marked in France by the explosion of contemporary dance and the development of video, he met numerous artists such as andy Degroat, Dominique Bagouet, Carolyn Carlson, régine Chopinot, susanne Linke, Joëlle Bouvier and regis Obadia, Michel Kelemenis. He worked in the creative field with installations and on-stage video, as well as in television with recorded shows, entertainment and documentaries.

His work with Dominique Bagouet (80-90) was a unique encounter. He documents his creativity, assisting with Le Crawl de Lucien and co-directing with his films Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux and 10 anges. in the 90s he became director of video development for the Maison de la Danse and worked, with the support of guy Darmet and his team, in the growing space of theatre video through several initiatives:
       - He founded a video library of dance films with free public access. This was a first for France. Continuing the video documentation of theatre performances, he organised their management and storage.
       - He promoted the creation of a video-bar and projection room, both dedicated to welcoming school pupils.
       - He started «présentations de saisons» in pictures.
       - He oversaw the DVD publication of Le tour du monde en 80 danses, a pocket video library produced by the Maison de la Danse for the educational sector.

       - He launched the series “scènes d'écran” for television and online. He undertook the video library's digital conversion and created Numeridanse.

His main documentaries are: enchaînement, Planète Bagouet, Montpellier le saut de l'ange, Carolyn Carlson, a woman of many faces, grand ecart, Mama africa, C'est pas facile, Lyon, le pas de deux d'une ville, Le Défilé, Un rêve de cirque.

He has also produced theatre films: Song, Vu d'ici (Carolyn Carlson), Tant Mieux, Tant Mieux, 10 anges, Necesito and So schnell, (Dominique Bagouet), Im bade wannen, Flut and Wandelung (Susanne Linke), Le Cabaret Latin (Karine Saporta), La danse du temps (Régine Chopinot), Nuit Blanche (Abou Lagraa), Le Témoin (Claude Brumachon), Corps est graphique (Käfig), Seule et WMD (Françoise et Dominique Dupuy), La Veillée des abysses (James Thiérrée), Agwa (Mourad Merzouki), Fuenteovejuna (Antonio Gades), Blue Lady revistied (Carolyn Carlson).

Source: Maison de la Danse de Lyon

Artistic direction: Stella Arauzo

Creation: 2004

The Gades Foundation was set up shortly before Antonio Gades' death to protect, present and disseminate the work of this creator and ambassador of Spanish dance throughout the world. But the most important project which the Antonio Gades Foundation has undertaken, and the greatest homage that could be paid to him, was the setting up of the dance company to perform Gades' five masterpieces: “Flamenco Suite” (1968), “Blood Wedding” (1974), “Carmen” (1983), “Fire” (1989) and “Fuenteovejuna” (1994). Each member of the company was endorsed by Antonio and the majority were engaged by the choreographer himself.  The staging of the productions follow their creator's original recommendations to the letter. As trustee of the rights to the ballets Gades composed, the Antonio Gades Foundation is providing the new company with sets and costumes for each of the ballets listed above. In accordance with Antonio Gades's wishes, the foundation is both the executive and artistic producer of the ballets. The company, which promotes Gades' work all over the world, remains the Foundation's main collaborator and takes part in various activities initiated by the Foundation, including the prestigious Antonio Gades Spanish Dance Competition, seminars and specialist courses on Antonio Gades' choreography. The Foundation's current president is Maria Esteve, Antonio Gades' daughter, who has taken over from Faustino Nunez.

Source: Maison de la Danse show program ; Val prod website

More information

valprod.fr/compagnie-antonio-gades