Spanish Dance Company Brings Authentic Flamenco Performances, Events To Duke
Duke’s Dance Program hosts flamenco performances and community outreach events
The Duke University Dance Program will celebrate "The Passion of Flamenco" with a week-long residency by the renowned Spanish dance company Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana, Feb. 27-March 2.
This program includes three nights of authentic "tablao" flamenco performances at Motorco Music Hall in downtown Durham (Feb. 27-March 1); a free symposium featuring presentations by three leading Spanish dance scholars at Duke's Richard White Lecture Hall (Feb. 28); an arts-in-education presentation for Durham area public schools at the Reynolds Industries Theater (March 2); and additional outreach events for the campus and greater Durham community.
The entire "Passion of Flamenco" program is open to the public, and most events are free. The performances at Motorco Music Hall are $20 for general admission, $10 for students and $30 for café table seating.
"This program is intended to allow people from all backgrounds to experience this vibrant art form in a variety of ways," said Purnima Shah, chair of the Duke Dance Program. "Our symposium will highlight the multicultural influences that shaped flamenco, while the performances at Motorco will recreate the look and feel of a traditional flamenco cabaret in Madrid."
At the public school performance and other campus events, such as a Feb. 28 master class, participants "will even have the chance to learn some of flamenco's core movements for themselves," Shah said.
An important focus is the study of dance in its cultural context, said Barbara Dickinson, professor of the practice of dance. "We have forged a relationship for more than a decade with Carlota Santana and Flamenco Vivo, and we are in the enviable position of being able to advance flamenco as an important artistic language," Dickinson said.
"The Passion of Flamenco" is made possible by a Visiting Artist Grant from the Council for the Arts with additional major support from the North Carolina Arts Council, Durham Arts Council, Duke University Dance Program and Duke University Department of Romance Studies.
More information on the program and tickets is available here.