El Pez en el Asfalto
at Gateway Theatre (Venue 7), Edinburgh

James Panton

Formed in Cuba in 1988, DanzAbierta present a story of life and dreams in Cuba during the 'special period in peacetime', the time of economic austerity announced by Castro in 1993.

From the minute you enter the Gateway Theatre lobby you are transported on to La Rampa in Havana, where Cubans eke out a living selling black-market cigars, bartering consumables and exchanging pesos for dollars. El Pez en el Asfalto tells the story of a group of young street-traders who concoct a fantasy realm, reminiscent of Club Tropicana, where clothes and food and money are abundant.

But like Castro's Cuba itself, it is an unsustainable dream destined to come crashing down into the Caribbean. DanzAbierta fuse contemporary dance with Cuban, set to Latin beats, vocals and stylised dialogue - the result is exhilarating and exhausting to watch. Often funny, constantly emotionally charged, El Pez en el Asfalto is a powerful evocation of the power of imagination in a torturous reality. I wait with bated breath for their second offering this year, El Arbole y el Camino, which opens at the Gateway on 17 August.