Flamenco is rooted in tradition, sharp and precise, full of emotion that is expressed through regimented ways. So it’s no surprise it is the perfect fit for Federico García Lorca’s “The House of Bernarda Alba” — which also dwells on tradition and regimen while threatening to explode with feelings.
Gabriel Garcia has married the story and the dance form in a production of “Bernarda Alba” — Michael John LaChiusa’s musical adaptation of Lorca’s play — for the Ensemble Company. It’s a production that hits the right notes — moody and disquieting — led by a bravura performance by Janine Papin, juxtaposed against a fiery one by Briana Small. Where Papin is rigid and unyielding, Small is passionate and fiery.
Papin plays the title character, a woman whose second husband has just died. She has five daughters — the eldest, Angustias, has money of her own from her father, Bernarda’s first husband. The four younger are even more firmly under their domineering mother’s thumb. Small plays Adela, the youngest, whose spirit is more intact than those of her sisters. She still dreams of love, even if those dreams may conflict with the plans of Angustias.
Adela (Briana Small) experiences the overwhelming pangs of young love in the Ensemble Company production of “Bernarda Alba.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)
Garcia’s design for the show is simple — humble chairs and black garments — reflecting the simplicity of these characters’ external lives. Lorca’s play is set in rural 1930s Spain, where the “old ways” are still in force, and Bernarda is determined to follow society’s repressive expectations — at any cost.
“A needle and thread for a woman, a whip and a mule for a man,” she says. “That’s how it is.”
Garcia has created a particularly striking opening, both visually — with dramatic red lighting, a door flung open, an imperious entry — and aurally, with the clapping of hands and stomping of feet starting to resemble the drums of war — the emotional war that looms.
Angustias (Sophia Cintron, left) receives motherly discipline from Bernara (Janine Papin) in the Ensemble Company production of “Bernarda Alba.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)
After such a thrilling start, not every moment that follows can reach such stirring heights, and as seen at a dress rehearsal, some of the more static scenes felt a bit slow. But maybe that’s just because one can hardly wait to get back to the music and the movement that give this production its fire. Or maybe it’s a reflection of how time moves so slowly for these young women trapped in a world of regressive rules they didn’t create.
In any case, things return to a full boil whenever the music and the movement return.
Mimi Batista makes a strong impression as Martirio, a sister who has been told she’s ugly but whose longings still have power. A quartet of maids, casually talking about the abuse they encounter at the hands of men, puts a chill in the hearts of the audience.
Movement, such as a dance by Martirio (Mimi Batista), plays a large role in the Ensemble Company production of “Bernarda Alba.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)
Amy Sullivan plays the male roles with verve, projecting a mysterious and masculine energy when she appears.
But the author has set this story up to ultimately be a showdown between Adela and Bernarda. Fire and ice. Papin, not surprisingly, brings more layers to Bernarda than one sometimes sees. The critically acclaimed actor conveys the sense that she loves her children but is almost powerless to keep herself from destroying them. And remember to breathe as you watch Small’s physical plea to “Open the Door,” a musical number late in the show. You might want to reach out and help her yourself.
Follow me at facebook.com/matthew.j.palm or email me at mpalm@orlandosentinel.com. Find more entertainment news and reviews at orlandosentinel.com/entertainment or sign up to receive our weekly emailed Entertainment newsletter.
Bernarda (Janine Papin) rules her household with an iron rod in the Ensemble Company production of “Bernarda Alba.” (Courtesy Matthew MacDermid)
‘Bernarda Alba’
Length: 90 minutes, no intermission
Where: Imagine Performing Arts Center at Oviedo Mall, 1700 Oviedo Mall Blvd.
When: Through Sept. 14
Cost: $20-$24
Info: imagineperformingartscenter.org
https://www.orlandosentinel.com/2025/09/06/bernarda-alba-review-ensemble-company/
