Flamenco

I saw Riverdance when I was 14 and sure, the step dancers were amazing, but the flamenco dancer mid show was sex on stage. She was phenomenal. She wore red and she moved oh so slowly.

Antonio Gades

My first show I designed was Blood Wedding by Fredrico Garcia Lorca. Our directors, one a choreographer, had wanted to produce this piece for years and focused on Spanish flamenco movements to inform the play. I watched a lot of flamenco for research, Antonio Gades specifically. This man, woof. I don't go for skinny boys, but woof. I watched his Blood Wedding and Carmen, both flamenco "ballets" with the story as rehearsal and performance.  El Amor Brujo is more of a traditional production in that there is no rehearsal as performance.

Gades' partner in these three, and in many of his YouTube videos, is Cristina Hoyos. This woman, while not classically beautiful, is the sex. She performed at the 1992 Barcelona Olympic opening ceremonies. These two together are ridiculous.

Things that are great about flamenco:
-The hands: SO deliberate and fluid

-The feet: I don't know how they make all the noise they do with what looks likes so little movement

-The faces: SO intense!

-The music: Spanish flamenco singing is haunting and raw

-The clapping: major part of flamenco, so great

-The pants: so high waisted 

-The dresses: I've said it before and I'll say it again, female dancers, and performers, get extra points for working their costumes. It's a big job.

-The men: so so skinny

-the women: so so curvy

Case in point about the pants and the dresses. She WORKS that dress:

And then there's Carmen Amaya. THE dancer of her generation. This clip has her in pants and a dress. Skip to 7:35 if you must. She might be in pants, but she works that hair.