Review: MALEVO, Peacock Theatre

Bang-bang-bang. Tap-tap-tap. Stomp-stomp-stomp. Crackity-crack-crack. Matías Jaime’s Argentinian hit Malevo sounds like the world’s loudest hailstorm while serving up a feast of blistering choreography.

Featuring an all-male black-clad troupe and a quartet of musicians, Jaime’s malambo-infused creation has already been seen around the world and arrives this week at Peacock Theatre. In the US, it reached the semi-finals of America’s Got Talent and has worked with Ricky Martin and Cirque du Soleil. 

This is frenetic stuff from crown to corns with a baker’s dozen of buff bare-chested dancers using “bombo legüero” drums, boleadoras and no end of nifty footwork lighting up the stage in a frenzy of rat-a-tat noise. If Magic Mike and Stomp were combined into a show directed by Germán Cornejo, the result might look something like this.

The boleadoras - a stringed leather and stone hunting tool used by Gauchos - are a particular highlight as, when not smacking the ground to create their own rhythm, they are swung every which way to create mesmeric circles in the air. Traditionally made of hollowed tree trunks, the drums are worn by each dancer and hit by two sticks either on the rim or the skin itself. Whips are deployed for a short time partway through as another highly visual percussion instrument.

Even when the instruments are put away, there is plenty to admire when they break out the lightning-fast zapateo dance routines. Dance captains, Miguel Flores and Ariel Pereyra provide stunning solo turns before bringing in the rest of the troupe to create a panorama of black-clad hoofers. Zapateo is the forerunner to malambo and was a favourite of the Pampa cowboys around 500 years ago. There are many nods to modern tango and fans of South American dance will appreciate the intricate footwork and many speedy leg flips and high kicks.

Jaime is not one to do things by halves. Running at around 80 minutes with no interval, this is a rollercoaster of set pieces but Malevo runs out of creative steam about halfway through. The sonic force of the opening number with its drumming dancers walking across the stage, occasionally banging each other’s drum, still resonates when later they are sat down and banging each other drums but ennui quickly sets in.

The instrument playing and choreography is impressive but the lack of variety as the show goes on is only broken by sequences featuring just the backing musicians. A quartet featuring an accordion, a full set of drums, a violin and an acoustic guitar manage to utterly mangle The Beatles’ “Yesterday” before they knock it out of the park with an imperious “Paint It Black” giving the Rolling Stones original a sprint for the money. 

It is no surprise that this troupe has won acclaim when in short bursts on talent shows or alongside a singer but, in its elongated form, there is not enough to sustain the attention. This show desperately needs more of a theatrical spark and their interpretation of classic songs is very welcome but too little, too late. Ultimately, Malevo is disappointingly repetitive or as the Argentians might say, “medio pelo”.

Malevo continues at Peacock Theatre until 4 November.

Photo credit: Malevo

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