El Caballo Blanco: Dance of the White Stallions Review
Geelong Australia – 15 October 2011, The City of Greater Geelong hosted an amazing, emotional and truly memorable horse spectacular with El Caballo Blanco (Dance of the White Stallions) about the tradition, athleticism and grace of the stallion through the culture of Spain.
Combining traditional Spanish music and dance, El Caballo Blanco is not just a choreographed show involving Andalusian, Friesian, Lipizzaner and Arabian breeds of horses but is also a history lesson on the five thousand year plus relationship between man and horse.
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Seeing the horses perform ancient manoeuvres from the haute ecole, a collection of “air above the ground” tricks which are jumps and balances was visually impressive not to mention the passionate dedication of the trainers and of course, the athleticism of the horses.
Moves such as the Capriole where the horse jumps in the air and kick their hind feet or the Piaffe which was a stiff military march to not only prepare the horse for battle but to intimidate the enemy is quite baffling to watch and makes you appreciate the training that these horses have received.
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However, before the Dance of the White Stallions commenced, the audience were treated to two very talented flamenco dancers in scarlet red Spanish dresses. This helped set the Spanish theme to the event before the horses were introduced such as the magnificent white Arabian Pasha or the warrior-like Andalusian with his jet black hair.
While the dancers performed, the horses rode around them before the flags of the Spain and the host nation Australia were brought out with each of the riders dressed in their respective country outfits such as the classical Spanish outfit or the traditional Australian outback cattle rider regalia with the akubra hat.
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Midway through the show, the audience were treated to the masked man in black and in classic Zorro fashion, he rode two horses around the arena that was nothing short of spectacular. The performer later came back to stun the audience yet again with more acrobatics as he spun around a fast moving horse, achieving some deft-dying stunts.
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The highlight was definitely seeing Renee Gasser in action, this gentleman who used non-invasive training with the horses and treated them with the utmost respect and humanity. Whether it was Renee and his horse performing a dance with a Flamingo dancer or seeing him command horses to stand on two legs, his passion as a trainer was unparalleled.
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It should be noted that each of the horses and breeds had their own personalities with some suited better to perform certain tasks but overall, El Caballo Blanco: Dance of the White Stallions was a highly memorable spectacular that we would recommend to all animal lovers or for those who want to experience something totally unique and highly enjoyable.
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Although El Caballo Blanco are headed to New Zealand in 2012, they will be back in Australia later that year. Definitely do yourself, your family and your friends a favour and see this majestic choreographed show about the tradition, athleticism and grace of the stallion.
For more information, please visit El Caballo Blanco’s official website at – http://www.elcaballoblanco.com.au/