Spain and Portugal for Visitors

Posted by : John Ross on Feb 05, 2008 - 12:52 PM Music

The image of Seville's XV Flamenco Biennial is a picture of flamenco dancer Yolanda Heredia by Colombian artist Ruvén Amador. The fact that she is nude in the picture is far from obvious at first sight, which does not stop the press from getting excited about it, and even the artist is quoted as gushing that it "depicts the nakedness of the flamenco woman in the perpetual light of summer." I must point out that the Biennial is a much more interesting affair than this story would suggest, being one of flamenco's greatest festivals, expectations for which are always all the greater for it being held every two years rather than annually. It is held in the autumn - this year's dates are September 10th to October 11th - and showcases the flamenco elite, especially but not only in terms of flamenco dance. Key figures featured in the 2006 edition, for example, included Vicente Amigo, Diego "El Cigala," the Amador family, and Pepe Habichuela, and the dance companies of Antonio Gades, Belén Maya, Mercedes Ruiz, Carmen Cortés, Eva Yerbabuena and El Flamenco Vive. A list like that makes flamenco enthusiasts' pulse rates quicken, and there is no reason to think that this year's biennial will be any less interesting. Read more or visit the Spain and Portugal for Visitors flamenco pages.

To return briefly to the headline for this story, the Diario de Sevilla tried rather half-heartedly to stir up a little controversy by running a poll on its website asking "What do you think of the poster for the XV Biennial which shows a nude flamenco dancer?" The overwhelming result at the time of writing was that the newspaper's online readers were delighted with the poster (43%). A few thought it "unsuitable" (18%), and even fewer said they "didn't like it at all" (10%). In fact, the 'anti' contingent does not even include a significant apathy vote - only 13% said that they just "weren't interested."*

*Yes, I realize indifferent people don't register their opinion in Internet polls.