Titanium – Rojas and Rodríguez Review, Sadlers Wells

<p>Flamenco duo Ángel Rojas and Carlos Rodríguez present the UK premiere of an unprecedented fusion between flamenco and street dance at The Peacock. Titanium sees a troop of 13 men take to the stage, dancers and musicians, fusing the rich dance heritage of flamenco with the rawness of hip hop and break dance culture. The show has won a National Dance Award in Spain and received high praise in a tour across Europe.</p> <p>★★★★</p> <p><img src="http://www.thegayuk.com/communities/8/004/009/928/388/images/4620938039.jpg" width="381" height="254" alt="" title="" /></p> <p>Titanium features a multi-talented dance cast of three flamenco dancers, three hip hop dancers and three break dancers including Elihú Vázquez; Vázquez is the nine-fold winner of the b-boy championship of Andalucía, and was part of Spain’s winning team in Battle of the Year 2005, the most important annual international b-boy competition. The dancers are accompanied by a live band of four including a flamenco singer, mixing flamenco with hip hop beats. Titanium is a show that has an enticing mix of fast rhythms and monumental solos. It a show not for the faint hearted. It eloquently combines the gypsy rhythms of southern Spain with urban dance alongside outstanding acrobats. </p><p></p><p>This is Rojas and Rodríguez’s most ambitious production to date and aims to offer audiences a new perspective on the commonality between the cultures of flamenco and break dancing. Both styles share a history of improvised movement, dance battles, live music and communality. The show therefore acts as homage to two vibrant and historically rich dance traditions both born and lived in the streets. </p><p></p><p>Rojas and Rodríguez, co-founders and directors of the Nuevo Ballet Español, have in the last two decades developed a reputation for creating pioneering flamenco work infused with contemporary disciplines and different cultural influences. Between them they have trained and developed under great flamenco masters such as José Granero, Luisillo, Rafael Aguilar and José Antonio Ruiz. In 1994 Rojas and Rodríguez jointly won the outstanding male dancer award in Spain’s National Choreography Competition. Both artists featured in the Gala Flamenca of this year’s London Flamenco Festival at Sadler’s Wells, Rojas as director and Rodriguez as performer. </p><p></p><p>And if you’re still not interested, perhaps the men themselves will tempt you. </p><p></p><p>Overall Review: </p><p>A sexy, sultry and interesting mix of two genres that most believe shouldn’t or can’t mix. However Rojas and Rodríguez’s innovative performance show that in fact opposites do attract. The impressive cast all interact with ease and we see the true joy on their faces as they are performing. It is refreshing to see that they actually love what they are doing and we love to watch it – especially the topless moments. </p><p> </p><p></p><p></p><p>Rojas y Rodríguez: <a href="http://rojasyrodriguez.com/">http://rojasyrodriguez.com</a> (Spanish) </p><p></p><p>Details: </p><p>The Peacock </p><p>Tuesday 5 – Saturday 23 May </p><p>Tues – Sat at 7.30pm / Sat matinee at 2.30pm / Sun at 2pm / Sun 17 at 2pm and 6pm </p><p>Tickets: £15 - £38 </p><p>Ticket Office: 0844 412 4322 or <a href="http://www.sadlerswells.com/">www.sadlerswells.com</a></p><p></p><p></p><p><a href="http://www.twitter.com/matt_peake">@matt_peake</a></p><p> </p>