Marcos Morau's Sonoma Debuts at Oriente Occidente Festival

Spanish director and choreographer Marcos Morau premiered his new work Sonoma at the Oriente Occidente Dance Festival in Rovereto, Italy, marking the 40th edition of the festival directed by Lanfranco Cis. The piece, produced by Morau's collective La Veronal, follows his award-winning Pasionaria and continues his exploration of surrealism inspired by filmmaker Luis Buñuel. The title combines the Greek soma (body) and Latin sonum (sound). The performance features nine female performers, a large cross on stage, Aragonese drums, and a litany of Beatitudes recited in French. Costumes reference Spanish tradition, religious sects, and rural communities, shifting from floral motifs to mourning black and white. The score mixes folk music from Greece, Russia, Mexico, and Latin America with Wagner and electronic sounds. Visual references include Pieter Bruegel's painting of the Garden of Eden and Debussy's Prélude à l'après-midi d'un faune. The text, drawn from El Conde de Torrefiel and Violeta Gil, with blessings by Carmina S. Belda and Celso Giménez, is declaimed throughout. The piece premiered post-pandemic, with underlying violence and suffering influenced by COVID-19 lockdowns.