FLAMENCO FESTIVAL LONDON 2006

By DeFlamenco
18 años Ago

10 – 25 February 2006, Sadler’s Wells Theatre

Spain’s top flamenco artists
will warm up chilly London with 16 consecutive days of performances.

Passion, emotion and the drama of Andalucian dance come to Sadler’s
Wells in February in a two-week Flamenco Festival, where the varied styles
of the traditional Gypsy dance are represented by the best dance companies
in Spain. The wonderful Sara Baras, known for her brilliant footwork and
powerful presence, kick-starts the festival on 10 February with the UK
premiere of her new show, «Sabores».

Charismatic Granada-based flamenco dancer Andrés Marín performs at Sadler’s
Wells for the first time on Valentine’s night, shortly followed by Flamenco
guitarist Vicente Amigo on the 15th. Amigo’s music fuses traditional flamenco
song forms with elements of bulería, bolero, rumba, tango and alegría
without compromising the authenticity of this century’s long tradition.
Amigo is followed by one of the great figures of flamenco singing, Enrique
Morente. Morente, often described as the ‘Picasso of flamenco’ in honour
of his controversial style, has reinvented the cante resulting in a fresh
flamenco sound.

Ballet Nacional de España, Spain’s top dance company perform «El Grito»
and «La Leyenda» from 17-19 February. Directed by José Antonio, the dancers
are expert in dance techniques from flamenco-puro to the graceful escuela
bolera to tango. The «Gala of Andalucia» showcases the full spectrum and
vitality of Andalucian flamenco arts and dance in a colourful show on
20 February while Compañia Antonio el Pipa present «Tablao», a one-off
performance on 21 February in the soulful Gypsy flamenco style.

To complete the festival, Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía, led by the legendary
Cristina Hoyos, perform four nights of captivating dance. In «Viaje al
Sur» Hoyos together with 16 dancers and 6 musicians draws on the full
range of traditional Gypsy dance, cante hondo demonstrating the essence
of flamenco: happiness, tragedy and passion.

The Flamenco Festival will also include workshops, screenings and contemporary
flamenco performances in the Lilian Baylis Theatre, including dance, song
and guitar recitals.