• La Chicana

    La Chicana

    Last week was my second time seeing La Chicana at the Buenos Aires tango spot called Torquato Tasso. This innovative band was founded by Dolores Solá, Acho Estol and Juan Valverde in 1995, but what defines them for me is the metallic resonance of Solá’s voice and the acerbic wit of her interpretations. That wit…

  • Social Tango

    Social Tango

    I was privileged to observe a rehearsal of SOCIAL TANGO and am the more regretful that the show’s opening does not overlap with my stay in Buenos Aires. This does not fit the stereotype of a tourist show, but a tourist ought to love it. The dances are not about acrobatics or overwrought sexuality. There…

  • The Hermitage in the Prado

    The Hermitage in the Prado

    THE HERMITAGE IN THE PRADO was not an overwhelmingly memorable exhibit, but agreeable in scale and very interesting. I’m not big on gold artifacts, but looked at plenty of intricately crafted items, and some intriguing and architecturally precise paintings of the Hermitage itself. There’s a good modernist selection. I especially liked seeing a female “Absinthe…

  • Festival de otoño en primavera

    Festival de otoño en primavera

    I saw three shows at Madrid’s eccentrically named FESTIVAL DE OTOÑO EN PRIMAVERA (Fall Festival in Springtime), which brought a plethora of international theater to the Spanish capital in May and June. My listening comprehension of Spanish is what it is, so I would not pretend to have followed every thread of the multiple plots…