TORO: BEAUTY AND THE BULL
TORO, DeNada Dance Theatre’s production by Spanish choreographer Carlos Pons Guerra, is a full length narrative work which presents a gender questioning, Hispanic reading of the fairy tale Beauty and the Beast.
Set in a circus sideshow in a dystopian South American landscape, it is a dark, grotesque and absurd tragicomedy played out by conquistadors, virgin lands, female bulls and animals in drag. Boldly dealing with the eroticism of the original story, it comments on the monsters men create through fear, power and oppression.
TORO, like many fairy tales, is also a love story, which in this case, happens between two women: a sex worker and a native, captured female bull, who find freedom in their union. With their love, the production aims to address the lack of LGBTQ+ characters in the fairytale canon.
The story, a post-colonial, queer reading of Beauty and the Beast, is committed to exploring themes of colonisation and its effect on gender and sexuality, male supremacy versus sexual equality, and the fear of the other. It proposes the question of who is the real beast, at a time when our governments and societies are demonising anybody who is other. It is a visceral dark comedy fantasy that calls for acceptance, diversity and reflection on our brutal colonising history.
The choreography for TORO draws on contemporary dance, classical ballet, voguing, bull fighting and drag to create a unique, highly physical and theatrical language that dynamically narrates the story alongside a stunning eclectic soundtrack of Hispanic and Latino tracks, including pasodobles, mambos, Latin percussion, sorrowful Mexican rancheras and the highly dramatic Capriccio Espagnol by Rimsky-Korsakov.
Performed by an international cast of six dancers, Costume and set designs are by Ryan Dawson Laight, with lighting by Barnaby Booth.
“★★★★ ”
“★★★★ ”
“★★★★ ”
“★★★★ ”
“Unbound eroticism and dynamite dancing”
“Olé”
PREMIERED AT DANCEXCHANGE, BIRMINGHAM, IN MARCH 2018
TOURED ACROSS THE UK THROUGH SPRING/SUMMER 2018.
TORO: BEAUTY AND THE BULL WAS COMMISSIONED BY DANCEXCHANGE, WITH FURTHER SUPPORT FROM THE SPANISH EMBASSY IN LONDON, OFFICE FOR CULTURAL AFFAIRS, AND THE BRITISH COUNCIL. PRODUCED BY SPIN ARTS
DeNada Dance Theatre- dancers Marivi Da Silva, Emma Walker, Nick Tredrea, Michael Barnes, Jonathon Luke Baker, Jatie Tucker, in TORO. Photos by Emma Kauldhar (onstage) and Joe Armitage
“Extraordinary poignancy”
The Observer
MEDIA
Trailer for TORO: Beauty and the Bull
Beauty and Bull: Act One Duet
Mariachi Madness scene from TORO
Capturing the Beauty: Act Two Duet
“Stylishly staged and superlatively danced”
Financial times
Featured
“Highly erotic and spiritual”
Dance Europe
“Sensual and provocative”
CREDITS
Choreography and direction: Carlos Pons Guerra
Design: Ryan Laight
“It’s witty, it’s penetrating, and it’s personal”
“Fantastical, camp and beautiful ”
Lighting: Barnaby Booth
Music: Chavela Vargas, traditional pasodobles, Rimsky Korsakov, Sara Montiel, Los Panchos, La Lupe, Mariachi Pedro Villa, Pérez Prado, Silvestre Revueltas, Isaac Albeniz
Rehearsal director: Azzurra Ardovini
Production manager: Mira Morales
Ballet mistress: Laetitia Losardo
Producer: Sarah Shead
“Ultra stylish, sensorial and sensual”
Press: Simon Harper
Original cast
The Bull: Marivi Da Silva
The Beauty: Emma Walker
The Men: Michael Barnes, Nick Tredrea, Jatie Tucker, Jonathon Luke Baker
Dragimals: Michael Barnes, Nick Tredrea, Jatie Tucker, Jonathon Luke Baker
Dragimal Crooner: Jonathon Luke Baker
Technical details
Running time: 1.20 hours including interval
Age guidance: 12+
Download dossier here
Commissioned by DanceXchange with further support from the Spanish Embassy in London and the British Council
Carlos Pons Guerra speaks to The Lowry on queer adapting fairy tales