A Guyanese audience was on Saturday evening captivated for about 90 minutes, by a performance from the Cristina Heeren Foundation of Flamenco Art of Seville, Spain. The production, staged at the Theatre Guild Playhouse in Kingston, was titled “Calle Pureza”
The performance was an energetic blend of flamenco song, guitar music, and dance infused with voices, melodies, and rhythmic zapateados (foot percussion).
The concert, under the patronage of Social Protection Minister Amna Ally, was put on by the Honorary Consul of Spain to Guyana, Brian Tiwarie OMC, AA, and
Ambassador of Spain to Guyana, His Excellency Javier Carbojosa.
In introducing the performance, Ambassador Carbojosa noted that while Flamenco is not known in Guyana, it has many influences from Africa and Asia, similar to many of the cultural influences here in Guyana.
The Cristina Heeren Foundation of Flamenco Art of Seville is known for the classic style of Flamenco. The Foundation offers comprehensive courses of study in the incorporation of accessories to the Flamenco dance such as castanets, fans, shawls, and the train of Flamenco gowns, in order to create a marvellously complex visual presentation. All of these elements were on display at the Theatre Guild Playhouse on Saturday evening.
All proceeds from the ticket sales were donated to the Ptolemy Reid Rehabilitation Centre. Cynthia Massy, Administrator of the Centre, was full of praise for the initiative, stating that “the Centre is a non-profit and depends on the support of a range of donors in order to provide its services to differently abled children”
Prior to the featured performance, a group of children from the Ptolemy Reid Rehabilitation Centre danced to the song “Guyana”, by Poonam Singh.
