The Esbart Dansaire Ramon d'Olzina of Vila-seca celebrates half a century of existence, maintaining the spirit of exploring the roots of traditional dances from the Camp de Tarragona region. Coinciding with its 50th anniversary, the entity has decided to introduce 'balls parlats' (spoken dances) into its performances, seeking to adapt tradition to modernity.
The first sections to incorporate these verses have been the Ball de Gitanes (Gypsy Dance), involving children, and the Ball de Pastorets (Shepherds' Dance), featuring young dancers. These dances were presented to the public last weekend with performances at the Residència de la gent gran (Elderly Residence) and the Plaça d'Estudi, setting the stage for the Esbart to schedule them every Sant Antoni celebration from now on.
“"What we wanted to do now is adapt the content to modernity. A group of young people has been responsible for choosing the themes and writing the texts."
The association reaches its 50th year in excellent health, with participation steadily growing to 80 members currently. The president, Mar Melero, highlighted the “big family” atmosphere and announced a new challenge for the coming year: founding the Ball de Cavallets (Little Horses Dance) and reaching one hundred dancers.
“"We are very happy to have this group; we feel like a big family, and we hope to continue growing."
To commemorate the anniversary, the Esbart has scheduled special monthly activities, including a sardana initiation workshop in February and a major performance in May that will bring together current and former dancers. Furthermore, the entity will organize the Trobada Nacional de Ball de Bastons (National Stick Dance Gathering) in Vila-seca in October, an event expected to gather around 80 groups and 1,700 stick dancers from all over Catalonia.
Finally, the Esbart Dansaire Ramon d'Olzina will take to the streets again this Sunday for the Cercavila del Seguici Tradicional (Traditional Entourage Parade), departing at 8 PM from the Castell de Vila-seca with its traditional dances, such as the Ball del Patatuf, the Ball de Cercolets, and the newly updated Ball de Gitanes.
