A trip to Seville and back!

I had never been to a Flamenco performance before. So when I saw P's event invitation on Facebook to this Flamenco performance by Maria Pages I was mighty thrilled. Since P is a connoisseur of arts and culture I  knew the performance would not fail to impress. So last Friday the 14 of Jan little bunny, P and myself found ourselves at the Theatre-im-Pflazbau in Ludwigshafen sitting on the second row all set for the Flamenco performance from this very reputed lady in the Flamenco field.

The whole performance was a reflection of the life in Seville a city in the south of Spain characterized by its Moorish influence and of course Flamenco heartbeat. Maria Pages was accompanied by dancers both men and women who conjured up through their dance, with their lovely costumes, song and the use of the guitar pictures of the Sevillian traditions and cultures. The stage backdrops fit perfectly to reflect the mood and the setting.

I did not understand the language but the songs were sometimes carrying a deep sad emotion reflected also in the faces of the dancers and sometimes passionate love and sometimes a child's joy. When the dancers came out with their brightly coloured dresses with large polka dots and lots of frills, I could not help but burst into laughter when little bunny asked me why they were dressed up like Marienkäfers (ladybugs). I found out later that these costumes were very typical reflecting the influence of the Gypsies on this art form where they sewed small round mirrors into their dresses to ward off the evil eye.

The choreography was beautiful each piece enhanced with the use of special accessories like the Castanets the clappers the dancers hold in their hands or the small colorful fans and not to forget the very typical red or black Flamenco shoes. In fact there was one piece dedicated to the red Flamenco shoes with white polka dots where with the use of lighting it felt like the shoes were cavorting and dancing all by themselves on the stage. Maria also transformed us into a bullfighting scene right out of the Plaza de Toros de Maestranza the historic bullring of Seville, she was half bull and half bullfighter..very beautiful indeed.

At the end of the performance P encouraged little bunny to stand up on her chair and clap hard as a standing ovation to the artist and her entire troupe who captivated us with their enthralling performance and for taking us on a virtual tour to Seville and back!!