Barcelona's MINIMON Plays New 42nd Street Studios, Now thru 11/23

An ordinary room transforms into a wonderful world of color and glee in the Off-Broadway debut of Mons Dansa's Minimón, presented by The New Victory Theater and running from tonight, November 8, through November 23 at the New 42nd Street Studios. Specially created for one- to four-year-olds, Minimón ends with a treat when the young audience is invited to explore the set and participate in guided activities with the performer after the show.

When Lua (solo dancer Sarah Anglada) discovers the delightful stories a child's dream left behind, a seemingly plain bedroom becomes a playground of enchantment. Look! Listen! There, on the doors of a wardrobe, upon the covers of a bed and even in the opening of a drawer, clever projections and a little stage magic, along with Sarah Anglada's lyrical movement, make Minimón, which translates to "small world" in Catalonian, come alive. The music in the production is a compilation of recorded tunes, carefully selected for each scene with different sounds and rhythms to provide the kids with a wide range of musical registers, and includes the work of French musician Pascal Comelade, Brazilian musical group Barbatuques and Wynton Marsalis. Created by Barcelona-based Mons Dansa (formerly known as Nats Nus Dansa), this dance piece for young theatergoers welcomes families onto the stage after the performance to see what stories they can discover on their own.

Since 1998, under the direction of Claudia Moreso, Mons Dansa has used choreography as a channel for communication, expression, amusement and education, and has created artful dance works for kids. The company has earned numerous awards, including the 2009 Premio Nacional de Catalunya de Dansa, the FETEN 2009 prize and the 2010 Dansacat Award from the Association of Dance Professionals in Catalonia. In 2006, Mons Dansa launched the educational project "Dansa a les Escoles" to introduce contemporary dance to public school students throughout Spain. Through this program, Mons Dansa not only promotes the art of dance, but also helps students and teachers reap the physical and emotional benefits of movement.

Mons Dansa is subsidized by the Department of Culture and Media of the Generalitat de Catalunya, Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports (INAEM) and Ramon Llull Institut (IRL). The company is also a founding member of La Caldera and a member of TTP (Públics Tots Theatre Association), ASSITEJ (International Association of Theatre for Children and Young People) and Te Veo (Theatre for children and youth). Specializing in works for young theatergoers, Claudia Moreso has created works for all ages, both independently and in collaboration with dance companies, throughout Europe.

Minimón features Sarah Anglada as Lua, with concept, direction and costume design by Claudia Moreso; Miquel Ruíz (stage design and construction); Roger Guinot (lighting); Hernán Alescio (animation); Elenio Picó (illustration); Rosa Pino (coordination and production); and Iva Horvat (booking manager).

To post a comment, you must register and login.