30 days left until DanceWeekend!
For today’s countdown we are featuring Ritmo Flamenco!
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IG: @ritmoflam17
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Ritmo Flamenco presents “Vida Flamenca – A Way of Life” on the #DanceWeekend22 Sunday July 17 at 3:00pm
No family lives the flamenco tradition more fully than the Scannuras. Their acclaimed work Vida Flamenca – A Way of Life, is an homage to the boundless strength and enduring qualities of flamenco that ensures the Gitano culture will live on. Flamenco is steeped in hundreds of years of tradition and is expressed in depth by acclaimed flamenco guitarist and composer Roger Scannura. Artistic Director Valerie Scannura has vast experience in both dance, choreography and teaching in her successful Toronto based School. Their award-winning daughter and co-Artistic Director Anjelica Scannura is a renowned dancer in her own right and has honed her craft since a young age proving that flamenco is “bred in the bone”. They are joined by dancer Sachi Ugucionni who has performed for over 20 years with the company. In Vida Flamenca, the dance and music come together in an explosive rhythmical heartbeat promising to invigorate those who watch their performances.
Can you tell us a little bit about yourself/your company?
Ritmo Flamenco was formed in 1995 by choreographer Valerie Scannura and music director and flamenco guitarist Roger Scannura. In 2012 their award-winning daughter, Anjelica Scannura became a co-Artistic Director and together they have shared their passion for flamenco dance and music. Indeed, no family lives the flamenco tradition more fully than the Scannuras. They are Canada’s preeminent flamenco family, pursuing their art form with authenticity and excellence. Since 1995 they have enthralled audiences in dance and music festivals worldwide in venues across North America, Europe and the Middle East. Their performance company has received acclaim for their passion and originality, garnering rave reviews for their authentic brand of flamenco that is “bred in the bone”. They recently were thrilled to complete a tour of Eastern and Northern Ontario and are looking forward to returning to the Fleck Dance Theatre for Dance Weekend 2022!
What will you be sharing at DanceWeekend’22?
We will be presenting excerpts from our acclaimed work, “Vida Flamenca – A Way of Life” which is an homage to the boundless strength and enduring qualities of flamenco that ensures the Gitano culture will live on. In Vida Flamenca, the dance and music come together in an explosive rhythmical heartbeat promising to invigorate those who watch their performance.
How has the pandemic shifted your work as a professional dance artist?
The pandemic had a huge impact on so many dancers and musicians that made their living by teaching and performing. Ritmo Flamenco actually had a tour to Deep River and Kirkland Lake scheduled for November 2020. Contracts had been signed and artists booked when we had to wait until this past April of 2022 to make the tour happen. We were so well received that it touched our hearts to bring dance and music to outlying areas that perhaps never had that much contact with the arts even before the pandemic. There were many other cancellations as well and our school had to switch to virtual classes. It was really challenging to teach virtually and I found the experience daunting at first, however it made me realize how much our artform meant not only to us but to our family members and our closer circle of friends and students. The pandemic was actually a valuable opportunity to pause and “reset” goals while taking stock of the world’s situation.
Please share what you are most looking forward to at Dance Ontario’s return to live performances at DanceWeekend?
Returning to DanceWeekend will be bittersweet as our last performance there was in 2018. Ritmo Flamenco has a history of performing in DanceWeekend since 1998 and there are many memories of dances and appreciative audiences alongside the support of Dance Ontario that make this series unforgettable. There is such a sense of community when Toronto and Ontario’s dancers come together to perform in the gorgeous Fleck Dance Theatre and the audiences are extremely appreciative. I can’t wait to let everyone know they can see us on stage in Toronto this July!
Do you have any up-coming performances/workshops/events you would like to share?
Ritmo Flamenco enjoys their summers performing in outlying areas in concerts and festivals in Blue Mountain and Prince Edward County where we are featured on a weekly basis in July, August and September. We will also be holding flamenco workshops at our Toronto studio at 100 Symes Rd in the Junction/Stockyard district of Toronto.
In 1 or 2 sentences, what does dance mean to you?
Dance means “life”. It teaches us that the struggle for perfection is an illusion and all that is important is the moment.
Photo by: Michael Lindon