Flamenco Dancing

Before reading "Blood Wedding," the class compiled fact sheets about the background of it. I chose Flamenco Dancing. Here is what I found:

• also known as bailaores or bailaroras
• stand motionless, then begin loud clapping with hands, then passionate dance
• dance involves fierce stomping and graceful hand movements
• need patience--difficult skill to master
• similar to Indian dances--believed that is the origin
• Flamenco dancing comes from Spanish gypsies who were concentrated in ghettos, preserving the dance
• in 1782, they were finally integrated into society, allowing for the spread of their dance
• Canter-the song, Baile-the dance, Guitarra-guitar playing
• "La Feria"-an important street festival in Spain where they dance the Flamenco
• 1869-1910 was the golden age of flamenco dancing, where flamenco music and dance began to be performed publicly
• Some flamenco dancing encourages improvisation, which creates a unique quality for the performance of each dancer
• modern flamenco dancing is sometimes criticized because it traditionally was not performed to large audiences
• women wear black, red, white, or blue dresses with ruffles and high heels
• men wear black or red tuxedo shirts with stretchy pants
• modern flamenco costumes incorporate more varied colors

Check out this flamenco dance video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NuJbZ8B46oQ

Sources:

http://dance.about.com/od/typesofdance/p/Flamenco.htm

http://www.centralhome.com/ballroomcountry/flamenco_history.htm

http://www.aifp.org/spanish/spain-malaga/flamenco-dancing.html

http://ezinearticles.com/?10-Interesting-Facts-About-Flamenco-Dancing&id=1347710