Forget Dancing With the Stars! You can see the real deal all over Spain on any given night if you check out a flamenco show. For authentic flamenco, I suggest heading to southern Spain: Sevilla, Granada, Malaga and other areas of the Andalucia region where this gypsy-flavored dance took root and still lives centuries later. Flamenco is serious business in these parts, and young people are still educated and trained in this flamboyant style of dance that has been passed down by their parents. In other areas there is also flamenco, but you do not get the same quality or genuineness as in the south. It’s good, but it’s more like a karaoke version of the real thing, in my view.
At its best, flamenco is nothing more than a magnificent guitarista and a single female dancer entwined in a vibrant marriage of efforts. The costumes the women wear are a marvel of color and design, with their layers of frill. The manic speed of her fingers clacking on the castanuelas (castanets) keeps in time with the clicking of her heels on the hard wood floor. The guitarist may shout out an “Ole!” or some other ancient sounding howl that casts an eerie spell over the place.
Flamenco shows can be seen all over southern Spain, and are often accompanied by a dinner as if you’re at a New York cabaret. I visited Granada and took in a flamenco show where I was able to imbibe in a bottle of wine and a delicious dinner of merluza (hake fish). Usually, you are allowed to take photographs during the show depending on the venue. Typically, these events aren’t cheap and can run $40 (US) or more dollars per person (inlcuding the dinner), but they are great fun.
At the end of the show, the musicians are often selling CD’s of their music or you can take a polaroid with the dancer–all for a fee of course. Most of the talent at these events are either struggling artists or music and dance students who have been honing their skills since they were young kids. It doesn’t hurt to toss them a few bucks so they can continue to study their craft and pay their electric bill, so do dip your hand in your pocket to show you appreciate their work.
Both men and women can dance flamenco, and you will see a variation of them at a show. Unlike other forms of dance involving men, such as ballet, flamenco comes at it with a high level of machismo and manliness. You won’t see any fluttering about on behalf of the caballero (man) doing flamenco. It is hard-core raw energy. My preference, however, is to see the damas (women). The movements of their arms, and the way they toss their skirts around is heaven to watch. Here too, she will dance not in a willowy, soft manner–but with a vicious stomp and power that matches that of the men. Often there is a battle between the two, as if you are seeing a bullfight in action.
You can book your tickets online sometimes, but these tend to be for the mass produced events you really want to avoid. It’s best to simply get the tickets locally when you arrive at the city or town you are staying in. Usually, you pay for the tickets in advance at your hotel, and the show will send a small bus to pick you and others up and bring you to the event. This can be interesting in itself, as it can be anywhere–a bullring, a small restaurant or even a cave - these by the way, are the most authentic.
Ole!