Midwest Flamenco Festival

Classes with Juan Polvillo just for us, projected on an enormus screen direct from Sevilla, Spain.  Classes with Maria Rausse who will be here in person all the way from the East Coast, recently moved to the US after her time in Istanbul and Sevilla, Spain where she taught at the Universidad Menendez Pelayo.  Support classes with Melinda Hedgecorth just to make sure that we can digest the finer points of movement and theory.  A talk with our very own Michelle Heffner Hayes author of Flamenco: Conflicting Histories of the Dance and with singer Alfonso Cid about the palo that we will dance with Juan, Alegrías.  And of course food!  We will have a Middle Eastern dinner in honor of the Moors prepared by Oubai Al Rifai and a Spanish Paella dinner prepared by Sevillano Antonio Rojas.

Are you coming from out of town and need a place to stay?  We suggest Home2Suites by Hilton in Liberty, MO. 

Here is the final schedule, all events and classes take place in Liberty, MO and are at Central Standard Time.

Friday June 24th: Did you come from out of town or do you just want to extend the flamenco fun?  Let's get dinner together at Trago Bar and Tapas in Liberty and share stories and plans for our weekend. (not included in Festival pricing).

Saturday June 25th: 

10:30-11:30 Sevillanas Danced in Flamenco Style with Maria Rausse

11:30-1:30 Lunch Break

1:30-2:30 Alegrias with Juan Polvillo

2:30-3:30 Lecture/Discussion with Michelle Heffner Hayes

4:00-5:00 Review with Melinda Hedgecorth

6:00 Paella Dinner by Antonio Rojas (this may be changed to Sunday)

Sunday June 26th:

10:30-11:30 Sevillanas Danced in Flamenco Style with Maria Rausse

11:30-1:30 Lunch Break

1:30-2:30 Alegrias with Juan Polvillo

3:00-4:00 Review with Melinda Hedgecorth

4:30-5:30 Online Lecture/Discussion with Alfonso Cid

6:00 Middle Eastern Dinner by Oubai Al Rifai (this may be changed to Saturday)

Talk to be given by Michelle Heffner Hayes

Flamenco: Movement and Meaning

From its emergence in mid-19th century in Andalusia to its proliferation on stages across the globe, flamenco has been a subject fascination and debate. In this presentation, Professor Michelle Heffner Hayes will provide an overview of flamenco’s complex history, from its contested origin points through its Golden Age to contemporary work. She will identify how shifting cultural mores about race, gender and sexuality are reflected in the codification of “tradition.” The gendering of palos and roles in performance, distinct vocabularies, the partitioning of the dancing body, and the transgressions and transformations of “codes” contribute to a continually changing art form.