Let me preface this by saying that I'm not one of those who make demands of festivals. flamencoThey shouldn't program anything outside the genre. If they do jondo It has been sneaking into all kinds of events for decades, from theater seasons to jazz and even pop-rock festivals, so why shouldn't we be welcoming to other languages?
That's what I thought while attending the performance of Rodin, the proposal with which the dancer Serge Bernal He stood in the Villamarta Theatre, within the framework of the Jerez FestivalThe work is inspired by the figure of the great French sculptor, as a pretext for exploring the myth of the artist capable of breathing life into inert matter. Three pieces in particular articulate the installation: the Torso of a Man of Louis XIV, in which Bernal crowns himself as the Sun King; the famous Thinker, perhaps the most popular sculpture of all time, and The Kiss as a paradigm of representing romantic passion.
From the moment the curtain rises, Bernal demonstrates overwhelming technical perfection and stage presence. Although my knowledge of classical dance is frankly limited, one doesn't need to be an expert to understand that the pirouettes, leaps, and arabesques are executed flawlessly to the delightful music of Jordi Savall.
Bernal, who has been Principal Dancer of National Ballet of SpainThis is an example of the comprehensive training that dance professionals have today, including, of course, classical Spanish dance, although those who came to the Jerez coliseum in search of flamenco They had to wait 40 minutes, almost half the show, to hear the first heel tap, and a while longer to see a tap dance accompanied by a string ensemble.
"This Rodin, flamenco Just enough, but championed by a formidable dancer and a cast to match, amidst so much sculptural form it left more than one of us speechless. But speechless in the sense of being moved, feeling, and deeply touched.
Although Bernal puts forth his best intentions in this endeavor, and certainly incorporates all his accents on time, it seems clear that he feels more comfortable in a straightforward classical register than in the codes proper. jondoIt's not that he's incapable of doing it, but in that aspect he falls far short of the beauty and emotion he conveys in his main role.
All of this ends up giving the impression of a far-fetched or shoehorned proposal in a festival that is celebrating its thirtieth anniversary, and which is held in one of the world's dance capitals. flamencoAlthough it could also reflect a very conscious desire on the part of the programmer to introduce creations that are only tangentially flamenco, which would either attract audiences resistant to flamenco or not. flamencoor open a door to classical dance for the flamencoThey're more fundamentalist. Anything is possible.
While considering these hypotheses, Sergio Bernal went from being a sculptor to playing at being a sculpture himself, as he spends most of the installation exhibiting a meticulously chiseled anatomy, recreating the age-old fantasy of the statue that comes to life and animates. His absolute protagonism finds in Ana Sophia Scheller the ideal female companion, both sharing a flawless synchronicity and culminating in scenes of enormous delicacy and sensuality.
What is certain is that this Rodin, flamenco Just enough, but championed by a formidable dancer and a cast to match, amidst so much sculptural form it left more than one of us speechless. But speechless in the sense of being moved, feeling, and being touched.
Credits
Rodinby Sergio Bernal Dance Company
XXX Jerez Festival
Villamarta Theatre, Jerez
February 27th 2026
Choreography: Sergio Bernal, Ricardo Cue, Valentino Zucchetti
Music: Roque Baños, Jordi Savall, Maurice Ravel, Rachmaninov
Dance: Sergio Bernal, Ana Sophia Scheller
Guitar: Daniel Jurado
Percussion: Javier Valdunciel
Violin: Carmen Victoria Luzón, Alejandro José Vázquez, Ramiro José García
Chello: Jorge Eduardo Gutiérrez
Viola: Marta Rodríguez
Clarinet: Carolina Prado
The Jerez Festival, from its origin, was dedicated to "dance" flamenco and Spanish dance." Of course, the first of these two genres has always played the leading role, but I don't think the goal of also including Spanish dance—whether classical, folk, or modern—would ever have been abandoned. So, criticizing a Spanish dance performance for lacking flamenco seems unfair to me.
Dear reader:
I believe my review makes it clear that I approve of this show's inclusion in the Jerez Festival, for whatever reasons the programmers chose to give. I don't know if any audience members would be disappointed expecting something different from 'Rodin,' but I'm convinced that labels only serve the convenience of us journalists and make things easier for distributors. Fortunately, art always transcends them.