Portrait in despair

Spanish dancer-choreographer Marta Carrasco has an affinity for pain, notably the emotional anguish of aggrieved souls. In her 1995 portrait of an alcoholic, “Aiguardent� (Firewater), a solo she brought to the John Anson Ford Amphitheatre last year, she plumbed the depths of booze-drenched despair, and the work went on to earn her Spain’s top arts prize for best female performance of 2003.

Continuing the leitmotif of agony, in 1999 the Barcelona-based Carrasco conceived another solo, “Blanc d’Ombra� (White in the Shadow) -- this one a portrayal of French sculptor Camille Claudel, who was a muse to sculptor Auguste Rodin and who died in an asylum in 1943, at age 79. On Friday, Carrasco will return to the Ford to present the work’s U.S. premiere.

Speaking through an interpreter by phone from Madrid, Carrasco said she was drawn to Claudel after visiting the Rodin Museum in Paris.

“It had intrigued me why at the museum there was only one wing dedicated to this female sculptor, when in actuality there should have been an entire museum dedicated to her,� she said. “But what fascinated me most was the person: her beauty, her strength, her tortured life -- and the passion that permeated her entire body and manifested itself in the work.

“My quest was to dig as deep as I could to really find out who this woman was. The more I became familiar with her life and story, the more obsessed I became.�

Carrasco said she pored through biographies. Another source, she said, was the 1988 French film “Camille Claudel,� directed by Bruno Nuytten and starring Isabelle Adjani. According to film historian David Thomson, Adjani’s Oscar-nominated performance depicts “a woman in love with art, exhilaration and danger.� The description could as easily apply to Carrasco’s interpretation. The difference is that “Blanc d’Ombra� begins as Claudel’s life is ending.

While researching the artist’s life, Carrasco explained, she came across a picture of the 74-year-old Claudel. “This left such an indelible, tender image of this old woman that I chose to start with this image, and at that point in time, and work backward from there. The result is the impact of the woman as it affected me.�

Carrasco added that it was never her intent to tell a linear story. Rather, she aimed to build a work out of metaphors and visual elements, the latter including a stage strewn with objects resembling statuary. “I was intrigued by the form of the body,� she said. “In sculpture, I’m intrigued by those lines, the curves the female body creates. That’s why there’s nudity in the piece. I hope it doesn’t scandalize our audience.�

After a pause, she laughed uproariously. “Quite frankly, I don’t think my body will scandalize anyone.�

Carrasco, who will celebrate her 40th birthday this weekend, initially trained as a pianist and didn’t begin dancing seriously until she was 17, eventually studying ballet, jazz and modern dance in Barcelona, Paris and New York. She also worked with a number of European choreographers and companies as well as visual artist Pep Bou, whom she met in 1992, before striking out on her own three years later.

Yet her relationship with Bou proved both enduring and fruitful. Their professional collaboration started with “Aiguardent,� co-directed by Bou and Ariel Garcia Valdes, and has included a 1999 theater piece by Bou. “Blanc d’Ombra� was co-directed by Carrasco and Bou, this time assisted by Oscar Molina.

For the 60-minute “Blanc,� Carrasco appears first as a wizened woman. Bewigged and cloaked in layers of fabric, she gradually sheds the trappings of old age to reveal an artist enraptured by forms -- those of her sculpted creations, of her own body, even of sustenance, such as the pleasure to be derived from an apple.

Claudel spent her last 30 years in institutions. But unlike some performers, whose character studies take them to a literal heart of darkness, Carrasco opted not to visit an asylum.

“I didn’t want to have those frames of references of a real place, with concrete evidence,� she said. “As an artist, I wanted to find these ideas on my own. As always, I begin pieces working by myself, which usually takes about three months.�

She said she then brings in Bou, who sits back, observes and offers a critique. “It’s a wonderful balance. He is serene, calm and methodical, which is a huge contrast with me. I work very, very quickly and have strong opinions. He provides a calming element to the process that I don’t have.�

Again, she howled with laughter. “It’s a disaster, my process, a disaster.�

Bou, 53, tends to the details, including lighting. “Marta creates the situations according to her dramatic and choreographic needs,� the director said in an e-mail from Barcelona. “She is a very visceral woman, which makes a creative professional relationship. The process is powerful, and sometimes sparks arise. But the collaboration is fluent. I always respect her direction and choices.�

Carrasco’s musical background also figures prominently in the collaboration. In “Blanc,� as in “Aiguardent,� she makes use of an eclectic score that includes pop and classical elements. She’s also keen on ambient sounds and described the score for “Blanc� as her most complex. “Music is important and usually dictates what I need to convey,� she said. “I went into the studio and recorded sounds such as people walking on stones. I also have weaknesses for Mahler, Mozart and [the late Belgian songwriter Jacques] Brel.�

And she has an abiding affection for Claudel, who she believes was not insane at the time she was institutionalized but became so after being surrounded by lunacy.

“I have no interest in denying the humanity and complexity of this character,� Carrasco said. “The desperation is something that humans can relate to, because we’ve all gone through desperate times....

“If there wasn’t conflict, there wouldn’t be any theater.�

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‘Blanc d’Ombra’ (White in the Shadow)

Where: John Anson Ford Amphitheatre, 2580 Cahuenga Blvd. East, Hollywood

When: 8:30 p.m. Friday

Price: $12 to $20

Contact: (323) 461-3673