Do you have any idea how fortunate we are to have "la China" coming to teach in Philly? No, really. Do you have any idea? This woman is a giant. Not only has she performed professionally with such flamenco royalty as Camarón, Manolete and Manolo Soler, but she has trained generations of flamenco dancers. For the past 10 years, she has been teaching at Amor de Dios in Madrid, as one blogger calls it "the Harvard of Flamenco." Suffice it to say, she is the real thing.Right. So why would an uncoordinated schlubb like me dare to set foot in one of her classes? (I asked myself this same question when she came here in 2004......) Because her classes are phenomenal! She gets you to do things you never imagined you could do. Her sense of compás is original and surprising. You'll find yourself singing the steps the next day in the grocery store. Sure, it's a lot of hard work (read: you will sweat more than you can possibly imagine), but it's also a lot of fun. And it's a rite of passage of sorts - a chance to participate in flamenco history. Plus, it's a lot cheaper than flying to Madrid for the weekend!
I will offer one word of caution: if you are a very brand new beginner, you might find la China's class a little over your head. Keep in mind, "Beginner" in Spain is what we would consider intermediate here. On the other hand, once she teaches the choreography , she has you repeat everything hundreds of times. This is a chance for the people who have it to perfect it, and for the people who are a little behind to catch up. One thing is for sure; I'll be there.
For further information contact Monica Herrera at 267-307-5354 or mnh928@yahoo.com
1 comments:
i'm just a guitarist, but even i am familiar with some of china's choreographies. in 1996 i did a show with the blanca luz academy in buena park (southern california) and a month before the performance they sent me a video of the dancers going through the choreography unaccompanied. so, if you can imagine: i "composed" the music while watching the video! i arrived a few days in l.a. a few days before the show with the music pretty much set and the rehearsals went pretty smoothly. needless to say, i watched that video so many times that i pretty much memorized the choreography myself! china came up with some very cool stuff! people who know me, know that i'm not so crazy about rehearsing flamenco, but as modern choreographies get more complex and more rhythmically sophisticated, memorization has become a necessity.
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