Luisa Rocha talks about "Fado Moves"

Luisa Rocha

I think the upcoming "Fado Moves" show is generating a bit of excitement here, so I wrote to Luisa Rocha to ask her if she could offer some additional details on the lead-up to the show, including preparation, and also how the show evolved. Here's her reply, which I've translated from the Portuguese.

"The project requires alot of concentration from the enire team. There are alot of differences that you can find among us: culture, language, musical style. Event within the company of dancers the mix is eclectic: from ballet to Bboy, through Hip-hop and Modern. We have in common a passion for the arts--an affinitiy that is necessary if we are going to do good work."

"About the preparation for the show, she says that it "began before we had our first meeting face to face. When I arrived in the US, I was surprised: all of the dancers had listened to and studied alot about the fado, and just like me felt that the project brought with it alot of responsibility. It needs to be treated very seriously, particularly because it is a genre of music that represents a large part of Portuguese culture, and that is still being considered as "Patrimony of Humanity" by UNESCO."

"At the first meeting, I wanted to sing in a way that everyone would feel the magic of the fado as they would if I were singing in a typical fado house.  After this first contact, a choice of repertory for the show was made based on the music of my first CD, "Uma noite de amor" (A night of love)."

"Even before the first translation of the lyrics were made, it was curious to see that each gesture of the dancers would describe what each song was saying. After the dancers were given the translations, it was interesting to see that, if they had been given the translations earlier, the choices would have been the same in order for them to identify with the story that they would tell."

"The music overcame any barrier of differences. At this moment, it is no longer "a singer with dancers", but rather a group of friends sensitized and motivated to make the "fado move".  

"I know that in a recent article in the Luso-Americano Michael da Silva, the mentor of this project, says that his objective is to bring "Fado Moves" to the world. But I confess that I would be very happy if our next destination were Portugal."

Thanks to Luisa for furnishing these comments on the show. If anyone reading this blog manages to get out and see the show "Fado Moves", or to hear Luisa singing this month at Alfama restaurant in New York City, please leave a comment so that we can all know how it was!