Galván’s La Fiesta: A Celebration of Upheaval
In observing the spectacle that is Israel Galván’s La Fiesta (La Fiesta 2017), Doris Sommer’s definition of ‘cultural agency’ comes to mind; “ways in which creative practices ‘put culture to work’ towards social contributions by pursuing ‘multiple creative engagements with power” (qtd. in Fuentes 34). While Sommer’s definition of cultural agency challenges “narratives of sovereignty, homeland security and patriotism that cast immigrants as criminals” (34), La Fiesta decides challenge to the power of the hierarchical structure in standard flamenco tradition by having a collective of dancers create their own version of the art form, one in which there is no order, only chaos. This chaos did not go unnoticed by the audience. In the first half of the production, the audience is forgiving; it might not be the traditional flamenco dance they came to see, but they wait. Halfway throughout the production, Galván sits on a platform center-stage and throws his head back as he lets out a loud pained cry and keeps the same position for a minute. After the first couple of cries, many spectators shout at him, fed up. Along the jeering, he keeps going and the disorder continues on stage, while displeased audience members file out to exit the show. Some even stick to the end, just to show their displeasure through boos as the cast lines up to take their bows. It wasn’t too long after this response that I realized the reaction goes hand in hand with their performance. La Fiesta is supposed to evoke these exact feelings by subverting the close minded definition of flamenco through its untraditional form.
I believe that it was a key concept to grasp in order to appreciate the celebration onstage; La Fiesta requires this dramaturgical outlook to understand just what the artists are trying to achieve. In an exploration on definition of ‘dramaturgy’, Behrndt and Turner develop their argument to conclude that “dramaturgical analysis necessitates a consideration of the question: ‘Why are we performing this play or performance right now at this moment in time and for what audience?’...‘What is the link or bridge between the work and the world and its audience?’” (35). Obviously Galván has answered all of those questions. While it's a shame that audiences cannot be unprejudiced enough to do the same, perhaps this production can serve as a gentle reminder of rethinking artistic conventions to those who believe that art should be made to please the needs of spectators.
Works Cited
Behrndt, Synne K., and Cathy Turner. "What is Dramaturgy?" Dramaturgy and
Performance. New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2008. 17-37. Print.
La Fiesta. By Israel Galván. Perf. Eloísa Cantón, Emilio Caracafé, Israel Galván, El Junco, Ramón Martínez, Niño de Elche, Minako Seki, Alia Sellami, Uchi. Cour d'honneur du Palais des papes, Avignon. Performance. 17 July 2017.
Marcela A. Fuentes. "Zooming In and Out: Tactical Media Performance in Transnational Contexts" Ed. Peter Lichtenfels and John Rouse. Performance, politics and activism. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire; New York: Palgrave Macmillan, 2013. 32-55. Web. 25 July 2017.
