Tuesday, May 10, 2011

#40 Flamenco Pictures

This addendum to Cadiz is to send some flamenco pictures from La Cava Flamenco Taverna.  It was difficult to get good pictures as the movements are somewhat unpredictable and often the dancers face or feet will not be visible by the time the camera actually takes the pic.
1. This is the entire troupe at the taverna.  The man on the right is absolutely fantastic and the girl he's dancing with is probably the best female flamenco dancer I've ever seen.  She was good three years ago and she's gotten much better.  The lady seated and clapping was almost as good, some might say just as good.  The flamenco singer was also first rate as was the guitarist.  A great show in an intimate setting.  Her dress looks mostly red at this point.
2. She may be the happiest flamenco dancer I've ever seen of any gender.  A few more white dots showing.
3. This is where the dress becomes a dance prop.  There's obviously lots of dots under the red overskirt.
4. Here everyone is smiling.  This bunch has a good time performing and that's part of why I enjoy it so much.  This ladies skirt is not the two layer type, but it's still a prop.
5. When they're not dancing they form a clap chorus.  I love the syncopated clap rhythms they set up to the guitar's music and the singer's song. 
6. This shot tells the story.  Look at the faces of the seated members.  They are all staring at the dancer, even the guitarist.  I have never seen a man's feet move faster than this guy.  He could vibrate across the floor, tapping so short and quick that you couldn't see his feet move but there he went speeding across the stage.  It was so fast that you couldn't really distinguish the sound of the individual taps, it sounded more like a steady murmur. It's hard to see in the picture but neither of his feet is touching the floor.  One is on the way up as the other is on the way down.  This technique puts the power of his weight into the tap as well as the power of his muscles.
Gosh, can you tell I like flamenco?  "I knew you could." - Fred Rogers

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