|
|
 |
The Northwest's premiere Latino arts and culture organization 425 SE 6th Avenue Portland OR 97214 503-236-7253 |
| Oyá:
Call the Storm
REVIEWS & COMMENTS Oya: Call the Storm Theater review Oya, the warrior goddess, and hurricanes We hear sound of sea birds, crashing waves and distant drumming and see a shiplike platform, with ladders reaching skyward and white sails shimmering against a brilliant painted sky. And this sets the scene for "Oya: Call the Storm," a vibrant collaboration at the Miracle Theatre Group between the cast members and director Rebecca Martinez, featuring brief narrative, constant movement and Afro-Cuban traditional dance from the Yoruba culture of West Africa. The story line, offered in English and Spanish, may be scant and oblique, but we understand the body language onstage. The narrative follows three humans as they struggle with envy, lust, greed and despair. They are aided by the warrior goddess Oya, commander of storms and guardian of cemeteries, who leads them to clear thinking; fends off Iku, the spirit of Death (who is also her best friend); and presents the three some real hurricanes to contend with along the way. Oya, played
by Cuban-born Freila Merencio Blanco who also choreographs, is
a formidable force, her magenta skirts swirling, her bright headdress
like a beacon, her painted face a mask of fierceness, her back
ramrod straight. She exudes power, and she's well-matched by Luciana Proano as the petite Iku, a frightening, sometimes funny creature completely swathed in black and gray. Iku sambas with Oya in a desperate dance and mimes human behavior with chilling clarity. Who wins in the end? Death, of course. In Yoruba culture, death is integral to life. Mayra Acevedo, CarlosAlexis Cruz (a performer with the Do Jump! and Imago companies), and company regular Maya Malan-Gonzalez, play the three mortals and also double as Yoruba spirits. The engaging multipurpose set was created by company co-founder Jose E. Gonzalez, and sound design is by Rodolfo Ortega. Always changing, life is temporary  We don't always have control over the events in our lives. We know that
what can be built, can be destroyed.And perhaps no one knows this better than the Afro-Cuban peoples of the Caribbean. Shipped in as a part of the slave trade, they knew what it was like to not have control of your own life. And living in prime hurricane territory taught them that what can be built can be swept away by the primal forces of nature. Out of this life, the Afro-Cubans developed a unique system of beliefs and practices known to some as "Santeria." The belief system revolves around several Orishas, or spirits who are said to have control of the world. Miracle Theater's newest production, Oya: Call the Storm, focuses on the interaction of these spirits and their relationship to three human characters: Melinda, Miguel and Eva. The devotees of Santeria call it "Regla de Ocha." The practice initially started under the guise of Roman Catholicism, but they maintained many of the practices of the tribal religions of Africa. And as the slave trade continued longer in Cuba than almost anywhere else, there was a constant influx of people who had fresh knowledge of non-Western traditions, particularly from the area of the Niger River. Dancing, song and drumming are thus essential parts of Afro-Cuban practices. Oya: Call the Storm is told mostly through dance, and occasionally through dialogue or song. Traditional Afro-Cuban choreography dominates, with some more Latin and modern movements thrown in. The dialogue alternates between Spanish and English, but it's possible to follow the play if you don't know any Spanish, some of the details may just be fuzzier. The titular character Oya is one of Santeria's spirits, she rules over the wind and the storms and as such, is one of the principle forces that act on the three human characters. All three humans come to (presumably) America, each for their own reasons. Miguel meets a beautiful woman, Melinda, who he convinces to spend the night with him. The next morning she leaves him because he is too poor. She is trying to acquire wealth and wants to avoid attachments. He tries to get work and make more money to win her back. Melinda becomes pregnant from the encounter, and this brings her much distress. Her funds also dry up around this time. Miguel loses his job, turns to crime and is deported. The third character, Eva, is a child looking for her mother. It may be that she is the daughter of Miguel and Melinda come back later looking for her parents, the story isn't clear. Each actor also portrays an Orisha. Ochun, the spirit of love, doubles as Melinda. Chango, the spirit of strength, doubles as Miguel. Eva also plays the spirit of mischief. Also constantly in the scene, awaiting an opportunity, is Iku--the spirit of death. Oya and Iku are often at odds, dancing for life and death. Actor Freila Merencio Blanco embodies the strong Oya with confident and powerful dance. Luciana Proano brings a slight but relieving playfulness to Iku. Mayra Acevedo commands an excellent range, from calculating to vulnerable, as Melinda/Ochun. Carlos Alexis Cruz truly amazes with his feats of strength and acrobatics as Miguel/Chango. The young Maya Malan-Gonzales is also well cast as Eva/Eleggua. The great value of Call the Storm is the realistic view of life and the outcomes it presents. Although few of us are likely to believe in spirits controlling the world, we can agree that life is neither all good nor all bad. Happiness is always interrupted by sadness, and sadness interrupted by happiness. That certainty of change is what Oya represents today.
|
CAST AND CREW Freila
Merencio Blanco … Oyá
|
Oyá is a
feminine warrior orisha of the Afro-Cuban Yoruba tradition. Like
the wind that she commands, Oyá is always changing, always
moving, with the power to conjure storms, hurricanes and tornadoes.
She is also guardian of the cemeteries, where the underworld orisha
Ikú, discouraged by pervasive human corruption, has challenged
Oyá to destroy the world. But just as Oyá calls upon
her destructive forces of nature, she witnesses humanity in its fullness.
Told through heartfelt rhythms of Yoruba influence, the story of Oyá and
Ikú unfolds through folkloric Afro-Cuban dance and song that
form a colorful language of movement to reach across geographic and
linguistic boundaries.
