Thursday, June 05, 2008

I used to think I had rhythm....

...and then I saw flamenco.

As we toured through the different schools, the same thing was on all the teachers' lips: "So, you're going to see flamenco tonight, eh?" Of course, we didn't realize what the big deal was until we arrived at our destination.

Here I thought we'd be visiting some sort of flamenco tourist trap, but I couldn't have been farther from the truth. In fact, one of the teachers at our host school was the president of the flamenco association in Marbella. The venue was quite small - just enough room for a small stage and ten or so tables. The front room had a bar and a couple more tables where patrons can smoke. We were clearly the only outsiders in the place. I get the feeling that you'd have to know somebody to even know the place exists, nevermind when they're having an evening of music and dancing.

This is why everyone was so excited for us. We got to see the real deal.

And it. was. amazing.

Here is a sneak peak of what we saw. Yeah, you can make fun of Dude's powder blue suit, but five seconds after he started dancing I'd forgotten all about it. I only wish this video could actually transport you to that room - it was hot, it was loud, and while this piece was really just a warm-up, the rest of the show ended up being the most passionate and intense thing I've ever seen on a stage anywhere in my life.

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