Last Saturday night we went to see the second production of Kusikay which was equally as spectacular as the first production seen in Cusco last year. Here is a bit of info about the show as taken from the brochure.
Kusikay specialises in creating plays that integrate elements from the theatre, circus, dance, music and live folklore, presenting outstanding pieces that allow the audience to get in touch with the ancient Peruvian culture.
KUSIKAY presents PAUKARTANPU
This time in our second season, we are pleased to present the production of a fabulous story - PAUKARTANPU - inspired in the traditional feast of the Virgen del Carmen or Mamacha Carmen, which takes place every year from the 15th to the 19th of July, in the province of Paucartambo, Cusco.
The play recreates an imaginary journey in which a tourist, a couple of bakers and a drunkard get involved in highly emotional situations that lead them to discover the Andean roots, which mixes elements of the Inca and Spanish cultures. Each character will tell the festival in honour of Mamacha Carmen through their own experiences, getting into the depths and heart of the earth.
By means of the dance and music and by using a good sense of humour, the drunkard meets the Saqras or demons, which turn him into the juggler of the festival, forcing him with his pirouettes to defy the laws of gravity. Meanwhile, the couple of bakers interact with the audience and the dancers, while the tourist, immersed in his desire to get the best shots of the trip, does the inconceivable and ends up so distracted in the middle of the Waca Wacas.
The dancers of pre-Hispanic, colonial or mestizo origin pass by one after the other, telling their traditions. The dance of the Majenos represents traders who brought liquor from Arequipa; the Qhapaq Qollas dance was created by the collavinos merchants to honour Mamancha Carmen; the Kachampas dance, on the other hand, symbolises the Inca warriors in their fighting expansion and conquest; and the Waca Wacas dance satirises the Spanish bull-fighting festival. Meanwhile, the Saqras escape in rhythmic movements from the Virgen, who is dressed in a lavish costume inspired by the spectacular multicoloured rays of sunrise at Tres Cruces, which coincidentally is the place where the story begins.
Besides the dances, we will discover in this play the encounter of two cultures, and the religious syncronism between the Andean and the Spanish, the merging of these two worlds that has resulted in a mestizo Peru. Rich in traditions, Kusikay puts the music and enriches this production with novel and traditional themes, fusing ancient and modern instruments.
We invite you to use your imagination through the characters, music and settings, which will amaze and entertain you using the humour and fantasy of a living culture. Get closer to the spirit of the Andes with this wonderful production, Paukartanpu, a show that will be your best compliment of your trip to Peru.
www.kusikay.com - I have added the website as you may be able to see some of the lavish costumes and get a clearer idea of what the show is all about. This show continues to run, Mondays to Saturdays at Teatro Kusikay, Calle Union 117, Cusco, Peru, starting at 7.30 pm. Further information available at info@kusikay.com
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Another week in Urubamba and I am loving it here more and more. I love going to market each day with Nohemy - we take it in turns cooking and also once or twice a week I cook for the musicians and other friends. The weather continues to be glorious and I am getting a brilliant tan. We tend to sit outside on the patio after lunch each day, sharing either a huge jar of chicha morada or litre bottles of coca cola, sometimes having a little siesta in the sunshine.
I went to Cusco on Tuesday, mainly in order to visit the Garcilaso theatre and purchase tickets for the Kusikay production ´Paukartanpu´ for the Saturday. There is nothing I love more than setting off in a carro for Cusco in the bright sunshine, watching the spectacular views as the bus climbs the mountain road zigzagging out of the valley, my favourite andean music playing on the iPod.
Also this week I had Carlos, Lidia and their children, Jessica and her two children round for a meal. They went crazy on my Malaysian chicken soup and we had a fun evening listening to music once the sun went down. I´ve also been round their house for an evening watching dvds of various live concerts, my favourite one at the moment being Rata Blanca, a rock group from Argentina who are brilliant. Sunday week it will be Carlos`s birthday and they are planning a big bash similar to Lidia´s a few weeks back.
The highlight of the week though was the Kusikay show on Saturday night. We got to the foyer about 7.15 and some of the cast were circulating among the theatre-goers and causing a good laugh. Seated 3 rows from the front right in the centre, like last year, we had a brilliant view of the stage and were full of anticipation as the auditorium filled up, waiting for the show to begin.
When it began it was absolutely amazing. If you look at the website www.kusikay.com and click on ´view video´ it gives you a few highlights of the show and you can see by the music, costumes, acrobatics and dance how brilliant it is. What you cannot see is how funny it is, they had the audience in stitches of laughter at their various antics, or spellbound at the gravity defying acrobatics. Best of all was the brilliant music which unfortunately isn´t for sale as a CD otherwise I would rush out and buy it.
Afterwards we went for a nice meal and enjoyed alpaca steak cooked in cognac and fine herbs which was so delicious I am definitely going back there again sometime. In fact I would love to see the Kusikay show again and will probably book up and go again in about 6 weeks time. Although expensive by Peruvian standards, at 21 quid a ticket it is well worth every penny.
The highlight of this coming week is Savia Andina´s concert at the Municipal Theatre in Cusco this coming Saturday. I am going to Cusco on Thursday afternoon just to buy the tickets, visit the ATM and possibly meet up with Juan. The best seats are only 40 soles, about 8 quid each, which is incredibly cheap for a band of that calibre. I have over 50 of their CDs and have never seen them live so you can imagine how much I am looking forward to it.
I´ve been enjoying tending Nohemy´s garden too which has a wild assortmnt of fruit trees, herbs and other vegetables. I spend 20 or 30 minutes a day watering everything which is a help to them as they are so busy with the demolishing of the old building attached to their house before they can commence the new 3-story building that is going to replace it. Trying to find workers is a bit of a nightmare as half the time they don´t turn up and those that do, if you don´t watch them every minute they down tools and do nothing. Nohemy gets really mad at them at times.
Well, that seems to be all for the moment - I hope to add more photos within the next week, all of which can be seen in the photostream. Will write another entry after the Savia Andina concert.
