Company

In 2016, Carmen Rojas revived Taranto ‘La taberna del toro’ for the Ballet Nacional de España, a work she had premiered with Antonio’s Ballet at the Palace Theatre in London in 1956. For this new production, with Esther Jurado as soloist, the costumes worn in the 1974 recording directed by Antonio for TVE at the Plaza de Toros de Ronda were recreated.

In the film Lunas de Miel, after dancing Zapateado, Antonio is picked up by the protagonist couple -she is the classical dancer Ludmilla Tcherina- and he tells them they can stop for breakfast at La taberna del toro. There, among other locals, there is a lively girl played by the principal dancer of his company, Carmen Rojas. After performing Tango de Juana Vargas La Macarrona for a moment, Antonio asks the young girl whether she can dance taranto “with your arms up high and swinging your waist”, he says, putting her body in position. Two years before Luna de miel was filmed, La taberna del toro was premiered at the Palace Theatre in London, ran for eight weeks and they continued to have a close connection with the city, where they were greatly appreciated. Elsa Brunelleschi wrote about this new London premiere that “having thought it had great quality the year before, Antonio’s company had now improved beyond recognition.”

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