Description
Don't miss this opportunity to learn how to dance one of Flamenco's sister styles, Sevillanas! Find a new passion and take on the celebratory dance from Sevilla.
Delivered by Lourdes Fernández, this masterclass will kickstart your learning the basics of the sevillana and its unique and complex rhythms. You will learn steps that make up the foundation of the style and begin to perfect your musicality and technique.
This whole event is part of the relaunched Flamenco Salon Series, that brings hand picked Flamenco or Flamenco inspired pieces, conversations and installations to an intimate audience keen to appreciate the best of Flamenco in London.
What is Sevillanas?
The sevillana is a dance that originated in Castile, and is characterised by vibrant dress and passionate movement. It was originally a courting dance, but has now evolved into a dance that is performed by those of all ages. The dance can be very sensual when danced as a duet, although the dancers rarely touch each other. Originating from Old Spanish courting practices, a pair would not touch until the final moments of the dance when the man embraces the woman, putting his arm around her waist to passionately finish the dance.
The sevillana is not flamenco, although now it is performed by flamenco artists who give it that special flamenco touch. Today, the sevillana is danced at any form of get-together, whether it is the feria, a wedding, or at a family party, where everyone present will join in. The sevillanas can be broken down into sections, performed to a set of carefully worked out steps of which there are at least nine different steps in each section and four sections in the overall dance.
About Lourdes:
Lourdes' whole life has developed through the learning of flamenco. She studied dance at the Madrid Conservatory, graduated at Rey Juan Carlos University and completed her Masters in Performing Arts. She also taught dance at the American Saint Louis University of Madrid and participated in the International Dance Gala for UNESCO.
Determined to step outside her comfort zone, Lourdes arrived in London in 2012. Since then, she has performed in renowned venues such as Ronnie Scott’s, The Union Chapel, Richmix. In addition, Lourdes participated in various festivals throughout the UK like City of London Festival, Birmingham Jazz Festival, Brighton Festival, Latitude Festival, and Salisbury International Arts Festival. She was involved in different bands and art organisations - Alma Gitana, Ida y Vuelta Ensemble, Live & Local - as both dancer and choreographer.
In 2022, she was a dancer for the Scottish Opera in the production of Ainadamar. She is currently directing her own company, Lourdes Fernandez Flamenco. With this, she has created Flamenco Raices, which she took all over the United Kingdom; and Flamenco Origenes, which is a production supported by the Arts Council of England.
No previous experience in Sevillanas or specific shoes are required for this masterclass.
Our on-site Latin tapas bar, La Bodega, will be open after the workshops, serving Spanish and South American drinks and homemade tapas - please email us to reserve a table to eat.
Our Flamenco masterclasses are ticketless events - we have a guestlist! We do not send physical or digital tickets for these events, so once you have booked you will receive a payment confirmation only. Once you arrive for the event, please approach the bar to let us know of your arrival.
Please note :
Once you have registered, we are unable to offer refunds for non-participation or non-attendance, for any reason. However, we require 6 confirmed registrations to launch each masterclass. Therefore, if we do not reach this minimum number shortly before the scheduled start date, the class will either be postponed (by up to two weeks), or will be cancelled (with a full refund offered). If another masterclass is running at the same level but a different time, this will be offered to you.
