So, without further ado: Joseph Maya he gave to Villamarta Theatre the best personal dance show flamenco of the XXX Jerez FestivalAlthough it may sound pretentious or biased, which it always is.
nameless color It is stated and differentiated from all the above by its intimate introspection and simplification of the dance, stripping it of unnecessary artifice to reveal its naked purity of soul, the essence and skeleton of the dance, in addition to the transmission in language of pellizcoand cramps that reach from the heart to the stands like a blow that lands in the left and does not bleed, but bursts forth and overflows with emotions in a gush.
The curtain revealed a spotlight that slowly illuminated the figure of José, thoughtful and distant, sitting on a bench. And just like the expressionist painter mark rothko She wandered through life until she committed suicide, Maya drifted along her threads of hope with the magnificent cello of Batio Hangonyi until reaching the light that blinded their impressions with strobe flashes in the Houston ChapelProjected onto the stage backdrop, which housed several works by the American painter who grappled with life and death, depression and contemplation, leaving us with works of intense symbolism that captivated Maya through both encounters and caresses, leaving him irrevocably ensnared by the magnificence of his brushstrokes. Once inside his paintings, José Maya embarks on a journey into his impressions, into the very core of thought. Through constant projections upon which he traced his dance, he lays himself bare to the audience in the various passages of the performance.
With extraordinary brilliance, he embellished the farruca, seemingly simple in its figures, yet poised and laden with meaning. He fell to the stage like a ton of bricks, his movements sharply defined, translating the fatal duces of a mad mind and a broken heart. José took my hand, drawing me into his world, and for the hour and a half it lasted, time seemed to stand still, reduced to a mere click. When I realized it, it was all over, like when a feeling overwhelms you and you surrender to the ethereal realm of imagination and pure sensation.
"José Maya put on a spectacular show. He danced like only he knows how, giving it his all on the wooden platforms, refining the figures, with heterogeneous, modern and traditional approaches, including classical, contemporary and avant-garde dance steps in his repertoire. But without straying from the core. Always Gypsy. Because his dance is irrevocably dark-skinned."
Delia Membrive She sat down beside him to unleash a torrent of laments in the style of fandangos with a Huelva flair, flamenco through and through, with poise and power, putting her heart and soul into every verse and caressing the lower registers with her throat, strided with fresh, raw echoes. And the choruses of The Calli y Gabriel de la Tomasa They soon turned into seguiriyas-style laments that Delia resolved against the passionate red background with the male of Juan Junquera Spitting out the last drops of emotion while José dissolved into the dance, stopping or inflicting deep, swaying movements in a lively and brisk seguiriya so that the pain would subside. And relief arrived with a vidalita, preluded by the clean tremolos and silky arpeggios of the extraordinary guitar that moans with Silvia's Frameswhich deserves special mention for its quality and astonishing youth. The second part of the vidalita was already accompanied by bulería, seeking joy in the cantiñas, preceded by a nod from José to the jota and the boleras. Maya brought the house down with cheers, playing with the timing and rhythm – aided by the just and precise percussion of Iván Fernández– as he pleased, flamencoWith gusto, gypsy and pure. Gabriel let loose the song he has in his throat with bulerías, wandering through the melodies at will, finding no mysteries in the cante that do not fit on the staff of their throat.
But the moment of greatest intensity occurs when, on the proscenium of the spiders José remains alone and tempers firmly, canonically and orthodoxly, curving the palate of those who know how to distinguish, the intricacies of the soleá to canteAnd then the dance. With no instrumentation other than his heartbeat and a few taps on his chest, he stole blinks and sighs from the audience. The "oles" came on their own, ripped out by the sheer force of a dancer who was complete in his technique and transparent in the emotional depth of his performance, which is nothing less than opening his heart completely to allow us to delve into the very core of a genius. Then the ensemble joins in with their resounding voices and they arrive at the Ballad of the Child Count to say goodbye to José, who returns alone to his bench, to the museum of dark sensations, to examine within himself, through the paintings of the soul, the tranquility of a bittersweet bulería, with A little fatigue, but not too much..
After the endless ovations, a little bit to end the party, since we're in Jerez after all. Then I'll cause a ruckus in The Gate, the relaxed, roguish setting where we ended up flamencoIt's for celebrating and looking for saliva for the sores with more canteMusic and dancing, accompanied by Jerez wines and the good company of the die-hard fans. Thank you, Antoniofor putting up with these people flamencos!
José Maya created a huge spectacle. He danced as only he knows how, giving his all on the wooden platforms, refining the figures, with heterogeneous, modern and traditional reinterpretations, including steps from classical, contemporary and avant-garde dance in his repertoire. But without straying from the core. Always Gypsy. And he gave his own name to his nameless colorBecause his dance is irremediably dark.
Credits
nameless colorby José Maya
XXX Jerez Festival
Villamarta Theatre, Jerez de la Frontera (Cadiz)
March 6th 2026
Dance: José Maya
CanteDelia Membrive, José del Calli and Gabriel de la Tomasa
Guitar: Marcos de Silvia
Percussion: Iván Fernández
Cello: Batio Hangonyi
