The Nova Galega Dance Company, directed by Marta Pazos, will be performing at the Conde Duque Cultural Centre on 27 and 28 September to recreate the historical work of the female stevedores who helped build La Campana Dam in Ferrol, which was the largest in the world at that time.
More than 200 women excavated 245,000 cubic metres of earth and stone during the construction of La Campana Dam in Ferrol between 1874 and 1879.
They were paid less than the men, even though they did the same work, carrying rubble in baskets on their heads. They were known as the stevedores and their story, which was silenced for a century and a half, is now returning to the stage in the form of dance.
The company from Galicia brings to life a piece performed entirely by women that combines contemporary dance and Galician tradition to rescue a physical and historical feat carried out by anonymous women from oblivion. The stage is a space where strength and delicacy come together, where the past and the present converse through the body.
Far from being didactic or literal, the production offers a sensory and symbolic journey through history, gender inequality and the power of solidarity. On stage, retaining water, which was the original function of the dam, is transformed into a metaphor for contained memory, which now overflows in the form of dance, image and emotion.
Among the repetitive gestures of physical labour, the contrasts of light and colour, and the earthy sounds that evoke a vibrating land, the show builds a scenic altar to the women who were the labour force and who have now been turned into art. The production establishes dance as a tool for poetic justice and female visibility.
Artistic File:
- Original Idea - Nova Galega Dance Company
- Nova Galega Dance Company Artistic Director - Jaime Pablo Díaz
- Stage Director and playwright: Marta Pazos
- Choreography - Belén Martí Lluch
- Sound Design and Musical Composition - Clara Aguilar
- Set and Costume Design - Clàudio Vilà
- Lighting Design - Cristina Bolívar
- Dancers - Nuria Alaña, Carmen Cebrián, Alba Cotelo, Estefanía Gómez, Alicia López, Laura Santamariña, María de Vicente and Inés Vieites
- Assistant Choreographer - Ana Botía
- Assistant Stage Design - Carolina Díguele
- Cover - Lúa Cárdenas, Alba Vázquez and Paula Silvarrey
- Costume-making - María Negreira (CDG)
- Milliner - Carolina Díguele
- Clogs - Elena Ferro
- Tambourines - Sanín Percusión Tradicional
- Stone Construction - Castells y Planas
- Creation Interns - Estela Ferrándiz (Master’s Degree in Performing Arts - URJC) and María Casares (Master’s Degree in Contemporary Thinking and Creation - ESADCYL)
- Technical Director - Cristina Bolívar
- Production - Jaime Pablo Díaz
- Lighting Technician - Ana Díaz
- Sound Technician - Alberto Beade
- Distribution - Rie Okada
- Photography - © Vanessa Rabade
- Poster Design and Creativity - Patricia Portela
- Communication - The Office Comunicación
- Collaborating Entities - Mostra Internacional de Teatro de Ribadavia (MIT), Ferrol City Council and As Pontes Town Hall
- Co-producers - Nova Galega Dance Company and Galicia Regional Government, through the Galician Choreographic Centre
- Support - Agrupación Foliada de Salto de Vimianzo, Falcatrueiros de Monterroso, Ignacio Frutos (Almirante Jefe del Arsenal de Ferrol), Asunción Larranz, Hugo Torres, Tania Caamaño, Isa O’Connor and staff from the CDG - Salón Teatro
Approximate Duration: 1 hour
Recommended Age. All ages
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