Spanish flamenco group to perform in KL today, tomorrow
SPANISH flamenco company The Alberto Marin Company will be performing today and tomorrow, at 8.30pm in Kuala Lumpur Performing Arts Centre’s Pentas 1, at Sentul Park in Kuala Lumpur.
Dubbed Origen, the two-night event is a collaboration between the company and the Embassy of Spain in Malaysia to mark the 50th anniversary of MalaysiaSpain diplomatic ties.
The 90-minute show will see dancers Christina Carrasco, 26, and Javier Serrano, 36, sharing the stage for the first time.
“I look forward to working with Serrano. He’s such a passionate dancer and we’ll feed off each other’s energy on stage,” said Carrasco at the show’s short preview at Bobo KL in Bangsar, Kuala Lumpur recently.
Marking her third visit to Malaysia after having performed here previously with a different company, the Cordoba-born loves an enthusiastic crowd.
“Malaysians make some of the best audiences I’ve ever performed for.
“They are so welcoming. It’s like performing to the audiences back home,” said Carrasco, who started learning the classical Spanish and flamenco dance at the age of 7 at the Cordoba Conservatorium.
Putting many years of practice into play, she said the secret to capturing the crowd’s attention was to dance from the heart.
“Every dance move must come from here,” she said pointing to her heart.
“One needs to feel the moment and the atmosphere of the stage and go with the flow.”
Carrasco also had some advice to share with those wanting to pick up flamenco.
“Age is not a restriction. There are many famous flamenco dancers who started late in their 20s. As long as you have the passion, you can ace the dance in no time,” she said
Besides Carrasco and Serrano, the show also features Alberto Marin and Cesar Cubero (guitars), Abraham Jimenez and David de Jose (vocals), Jose Cortes “El Indio” (percussion) and Rodrigo Parejo (flute).
The performers have travelled and performed in cities around the world, including Havana, Cuba, Paris, France, Rome, Italy, Prague, Austria, Berlin, Germany, Tokyo ,Japan, and Siberia, Russia.
Steeped deep in the cultural roots of Andalusia, Spain, the shows will enable audiences to experience first-hand the intensity of the flamenco dancers and its musical elements.
A rhythmic and melodic art form, flamenco involves singing (cante), dancing (baile), and guitar playing (toque), handclapping (palmas) and finger-snapping (pitos).
Tickets to the Origen Flamenco Show are priced between RM99 and RM199. They can be purchased via www.ticketpro.com.my. By Loong Wai Ting