Nocturna

Choreographer and director Rafaela Carrasco (National Dance Award 2023) and playwright and poet Álvaro Tato once again unite their paths to create a display of dance, music and poetry that seeks to explore the mysteries of the night, insomnia and human emotions. There will be two performances of this show at Teatro de la Zarzuela on 26 and 27 October.

It will be performed by Carmen Angulo, Carmen Coy, Alejandra Gudí, María Carrasco, Julia Gimeno, and Cristina Soler, Blanca Lorente, Magdalena Mannion and Rafaela Carrasco herself, accompanied by the vocals of singer Gema Caballero and the voice-over of actress Aitana Sánchez-Gijón.

The show takes us on a journey from dusk to dawn, addressing the issues and contradictions that emerge during this time: dreaming versus nightmare, the subconscious versus conscious thought and late night partying versus the quiet calm. The performers investigate the night as a mystical and visionary experience as much as a playful game where identities become blurred.

The night is recognised as a great source of inspiration for artists of all disciplines throughout time, and ‘wakefulness’ -  the act of staying awake - is presented with multiple cultural meanings, from standing guard to the sleepless nights of lovers. The show depicts the night as a dual space: one of sleep and insomnia, of rest and madness, of terrors and fantasies, reflecting the greatest questions of humanity through the art of Flamenco.

Nocturna is the latest result of the collaboration between Rafaela Carrasco and Álvaro Tato, who previously worked together on Nacida Sombra (2017) and Ariadna. Al hilo del mito (2020). Álvaro Tato is a playwright, poet and screenwriter born in Madrid in 1978. Having graduated with an honours degree in Hispanic Studies from Madrid’s Complutense University and with a degree in Stage Direction from RESAD, he is one of the founders and greatest exponents of the Ron Lalá group.

Born in Seville in 1972, Rafaela Carrasco is a dancer and director known for her great contribution to the renewal of flamenco dance. She created her own training programme in 2002, the year she won the major prizes at the XI Contest of Spanish Dance and Flamenco  Choreography. She was also the director of the Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía from 2013 to 2016 and is a professor of Flamenco Dance at the María de Ávila Dance Conservatory. She won the National Dance Award in 2023.

Artistic credits:

• Direction and choreography - Rafaela Carrasco
• Dramatisation - Álvaro Tato
• Live vocals and flamenco singing - Gema Caballero
• Voice over - Aitana Sánchez-Gijón
• Dancers - Carmen Angulo, Carmen Coy, Alejandra Gudí, María Carrasco, Julia Gimeno, Cristina Soler, Blanca Lorente, Magdalena Mannion and Rafaela Carrasco
• Musical direction and composition- Pablo Martín Jones, Pablo Suárez and Jesús Torres
• Lighting and stage design - Gloria Montesinos
• Wardrobe design - Belén de la Quintana