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| Consider one of the big cats, a panther or perhaps a jaguar. The compact muscles, the sleek lines, the power and speed when it moves. The danger. This is my image of Carlos Acosta….so talented, so strong and yet so graceful. Sexy too, with the biggest grin in the world! Recently I was walking down Floral Street in Covent Garden, passing the stage door to the ROH, and Carlos came out. I whispered to my little girl “That’s Carlos Acosta”, and he noticed that and gave my daughter the most beautiful smile as we went by! Her mother certainly melted! He is currently ‘flavour of the month’ at Sadler’s Wells with his debut as a choreographer, director and star in ‘Tocororo’. This semi-autobiographical tale is loosely based on his own poverty-stricken origins as the eleventh and youngest child of a truck driver in Havana. Carlos’ father sent him away to a residential ballet school in order to keep his wayward son out of trouble on the streets .In this way he would receive a free education with accommodation and meals thrown in. There were times when he rebelled but he was always sent back. He won the Prix de Lausanne at 17 yrs, and joined English National Ballet at 18 yrs dancing principal roles. Now he is one of the most sought after guest stars at the Royal Ballet, Houston Ballet and many other prestigious companies. His technique in the classical roles is impressive. In a recent performance of Balanchine’s Apollo at Covent Garden, he WAS the Greek God. His acting skills are versatile, ranging from the lighter roles such as Franz in ‘Coppelia’, to the distraught lover De Grieux in McMillan’s ‘Manon’. He danced the Messenger of Death in ‘Song of the Earth’ to great acclaim. Watching him in these classical roles you see how he gets under the skin of the character, not just dancing the steps, which he does brilliantly, but becoming the person he represents. In ’Tocororo’ we see a different side to Carlos; we discover where he comes from, his Cuban roots. The complex rhythms played out on the tom-toms and drums drive the music along at a tremendous pace whilst the dancers miraculously pick up on the beat, dancing with great vigour. There are plenty of classical fireworks from Mr Acosta, but when he shimmies his shoulders to the Afro-Cuban beat, and really gets down and loose, the temperature in the theatre goes up by 20 degrees. Viva Carlos! Mandy July 2003 |
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| ~Links to Reviews and Articles on Carlos Acosta~ |