Flamenco!

My first real experience of the Flamenco was shocking. I had no idea how loud and passionate it would be. About 20 of us from the city tour met up again with our tour guide. He walked us over to a little hotel where we climbed 5 flights of stairs to the rooftop terrace where we had a fantastic view of the huge cathedral beautifully lit up by golden hued  lights. We were given a glass of wine and then he did a half hour talk about the Flamenco which was really helpful since most of us knew next to nothing about it. There are about 40 styles of Flamenco and quite an interesting history behind it.  Afterwards we walked over to the Casa de la Guitarra which held at the most 50 people, the small venue key to a real experience so that you can see every expression on the performers' faces.

The "Spectacular " began with a guitar soloist by a very handsome guitar player. The next piece added a singer who didn't sing with the piece but simply added his own percussion by clapping his hands (very loudly) and tapping his feet. It was amazing how much was added to the music without adding any other instruments. 

Then Jennifer appeared. A vision in red, black and white. The guitar began, then the singer seemed to almost shout at Jennifer which made her scowl hideously and begin dancing. It was shocking and almost scary with the volume from her tap shoes, the singer and the guitarist.  Talk about passion! It felt like I was watching a very personal argument/discussion in a family that just lets it all out at full volume, both with voice and body. The performance certainly captured the intensity of the Gypsy/Spanish people with whom it originated. I kept thinking about how our guide said that they kept the Flamenco hidden for around 300 years because it wasn't legal to be a gypsy, so they kept their art to themselves. How was it possible to keep something that loud and passionate a secret??

The tapping (loud fast stomping) was a wonder to behold. Her feet moved so fast and furious that the section of the floor that she primarily stood on had no paint left on it. Her facial expressions as she danced and stomped and whirled around was so animated that I almost got the giggles. Talk about a performance!

All in all it was a fun experience. It was also nice to see all of the buildings lit up at night and the restaurants and streets filled with people.