Renowned Choreographer Gilles Brinas Brings Che Malambo to Life!
Renowned Choreographer Gilles Brinas Brings Che Malambo to Life!
A prolific dancer and choreographer, Gilles Brinas performed with prestigious dance companies throughout Europe including Ballet de l’Opéra de Lyon (under the direction of Vittorio Biagi and Miklo Sparemblek), the Ballet of the twentieth century by Maurice Béjart at La Scala in Milan (choreographer Amedeo Amodio) and the Grand Ballet de France and in the company of Robert Hossein (choreographer George Skibine). In addition to founding the Ballet DEA in 1979, Brinas has choreographed works for Beinnale de la Danse. Amongst his many honors are awards from the Bagnolet competition and the Charles Oulmont Foundation.
Brinas fell in love with Malambo after his wife introduced him to a visiting Argentine dance group whilst in Paris. With no Spanish language skills and only a plane ticket in hand, Brinas flew to Argentina to work on his next project, one that he saw as a fateful opportunity. Some of his fellow ballet dancers scoffed at the idea of a ballet with drums, but Brinas persisted, recruiting dancers who were intrigued by the foreign concept.
Of his choreography in Che Malambo, Brinas describes the project as a happy accident that has grown over the past 25 years:
"We were always in search of harmony. It's the rhythm that gives (Malambo) everything. I think that's why the show offers happiness, because we are (in line with) the heart rate. And we work with a lot of positive energy that touches people. There are so many things: the drums, the boleros, the zapeteo, the fire! We have evolved a lot, the whole company."