When I first moved to Spain, I noticed how flamenco shows and merchandise is sold up and down the street. I learned quickly that Sevillans and other Spaniards are very proud of this expressive tradition. Often on the weekends, there are street shows where women will wear the traditional dresses and perform for tourists in downtown Seville. Before moving here, I had never been to a flamenco show, so I decided on Friday to check it out. Once the show was over I was speechless, and I can not wait to go back and see more!
This week I learned about the traditional dance of flamenco. In my classes, I have learned that there are many different variations of this dance based on clothing, the props, the mood and the time period. There are a lot of layers to flamenco, not even counting the flowy skirts!
In the show that I saw, the women performed with fans, scarfs and castanets (which are two small pieces of wood held together by a cord that make a loud clapping sound). There were four traditional flamenco dancers, two were women and two were men. One of the men was also a lead singer joined by two other singers. The whole time a guitarist passionately filled the theater with traditional flamenco music. All of them had tap shoes on to keep the rhythm.
