Ballet Hispánico’s CARMEN.maquia: raising the temperature!

Ballet Hispánico and Amir J. Baldwin as Don José in Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's CARMEN.maquia

Ballet Hispánico in Gustavo Ramírez Sansano's CARMEN.maquia

By Deborah Weiss, 18 May 2025

Loading, please wait...

See full listing

“the conversation was fabulously depicted with shaking heads, shrill shouting and wild gesticulation”

Reviewed at Curve, Leicester on 16 May 2025

CARMEN.maquia (Gustavo Ramírez Sansano)

Ballet Hispanico

Luis Crespo, Set Designer

David Delfín, Costume Designer

Emilio Lavarías, Lighting Designer

Amanda del Valle, Dancer

Amir J. Baldwin, Dancer

Amanda Ostuni, Dancer

Omar Rivéra, Dancer

New York City Center’s Fall for Dance 2020

Ivy Lin, 29th October

New York City Center’s annual Fall for Dance festival heads online in a pair of programs, one much stronger than the other.

****1

Ballet Hispánico

Andrew Blackmore-Dobbyn, 18th November

Ballet Hispánico at the Apollo makes a powerful cultural statement about the vitality of the Latin-American community in New York City.

****1

Ballet Hispanico's Carmen

Andrew Blackmore-Dobbyn, 22nd November

Ballet Hispanico's CARMEN.maquia, presented for a one night engagement at Harlem's Apollo Theater, was marred by some lackluster casting choices that failed to capitalize on the story's essential drama.

**111

Mira Nadon’s sparkling debut in Firebird with New York City Ballet

Ivy Lin, 25th April

A triple bill comprising Balanchine's Symphony in C, Agon and Firebird could not have been more inspiringly danced by New York City Ballet.

*****

The Australian Ballet does Romeo and Juliet: precision over passion

Katie Lawrence, 24th April

This revival of Romeo and Juliet combines vivid staging and technical leads, but the lover's careful partnership lacks the volatility that makes young love convincing and tragedy believable.

***11

Acosta's Don Quixote for BRB: polished but not quite enough panache

Jonathan Gray, 23rd April

Carlos Acosta's Don Quixote for Birmingham Royal Ballet returned to Sadler's Wells with polished but low-key interpretations across the board.

***11

More reviews...

Deborah Weiss

Deb joined Bachtrack in 2022 and commissions reviews and writing on ballet and dance. She was Royal Ballet School-trained and is a former principal dancer for companies including London Festival Ballet (now English National Ballet) and Bayerisches Staatsballett. She has been writing for more than 30 years – publications have included Dancing Times, DanceTabs, Dance for You and Dance Europe. She also interviews for Voices of British Ballet, an oral archive of people who have worked in the industry in the UK. In addition to her writing, since 2016 she has been facilitating programmes that support victims of domestic abuse. Deb is passionate about her rescue dog, Bruce, and daughters (not in that order), swims a mile at least five days a week and is an avid reader.