Powerful, volatile flamenco solos

The six-week series of small-scale flamenco programs at the Fountain Theatre ended Wed- nesday with a sold-out performance memorable for commanding solos by Juan Talavera and guest artist Maria Bermudez.

Until a joyous passage at the very end, Talavera opted for a clenched, sullen and even threatening demeanor with angry outbursts of thunderous, high-speed steps and handclaps. His technique generated not only a powerful rhythmic engine but also a level of mastery in which he managed to cross-fade from one complex step-pattern to another with perfect control.

Volatile and gutsy, Bermudez made each step seem newly chosen, and her placement on either the stage or a raised platform at the side appear to be driven by impulse. This spontaneity, and especially the sense she conveyed of hearing the music for the first time, shifted the emphasis away from her forceful technique and onto self-expression: the portrait of a free, passionate spirit.

The dancing of La Sari (from Indonesia) and Irit Specktor (from Israel) tended to get swamped by the over-amplified guitar of Antonio Triana and singing of Antonio de Jerez. However, the former dancer brought to the occasion her sharply focused technique and the latter an effective sense of dramatic contrast.

If the brief group dances proved uneventful, the collaborations between De Jerez and Triana (artistic director of the series) exuded proficiency, expressive sophistication and a warm rapport.

In the finale, the cast invited audience members Lourdes Rodriguez and Ellen Markowitz onto the stage for solos of their own, after which -- in a deft switcheroo -- Bermudez sang and De Jerez danced.