1685101592 The theater and dance reviews of the week Rodrigo Garcias

The theater and dance reviews of the week: Rodrigo García’s novelties do not disappoint, the best contemporary Catalan scene and the best dance to understand Europe

Two burly girls in well-dressed trousers and a friendly-faced boy in a kilt. Rodrigo García has chosen an eclectic trio of actors to star in Christ on Tinder, a play that premiered last night at the Teatro de La Abadía. The title chosen by the author, before he had even written a single line of the piece, is an evocative slogan that alludes to the subject he wanted to address (the universalization of virtual networks) and to the name of Jesus of Nazareth, who appears in the text neither mentioned nor alluded to: “Christ is on Tinder” is a way of saying that “all God is on the networks today,” which is worth the slang term.

Atresbandes (Mònica Almirall, Albert Pérez Hidalgo and Miquel Segovia) is one of the best exponents of the contemporary Catalan scene. This season they are the regular company at the Teatre Lliure, where they have just premiered “Desert”. With the simple help of a microphone, an endless cable and a speaker, we travel like Captain Nemo into the depths of our universe. Screams, stories, songs, machines and other fantastical beings populate this underworld, proving that, as Björk sang, all things modern have always existed.

Europa, the work of choreographer Sharon Fridman and director Luis Luque, is embodied by six performers, including Melania Olcina, a brilliant and powerful dancer of the current scene and for years also a choreographer who regularly works with Fridman. It focuses on the verticality of the bodies and on the collective, except for moments when a solo or duet stands out. It’s leisurely, sometimes too much, but at a pace that doesn’t make it difficult thanks to the prints he draws along with the lighting.

Scene from the play Christ is on Tinder, Teatro de la Abadía.  Photography: LUCIA ROMERO

The Argentine-Hispanic author weaves a powerful rosary of sarcastic reflections on human relationships in the age of virtual networks, supported by a trio of superb interpreters. Review by Javier Vallejo.

Scene from the play

The company Atresbandes offers a journey into the depths of our universe with a proposition that is radical in terms of scenery and very rich in concept. Criticism by Oriol Puig Taulé.

Scene from the play

“Europa” by Sharon Fridman and Luis Luque recreates the myth of Europa’s abduction in an exquisite and refined free and conceptual version with a somewhat cold and aloof beauty. Review by Mercedes L. Caballero.

Scene from the play

You can follow BABELIA on Facebook and Twitteror sign up here to receive our weekly newsletter.