Spanish classical and flamenco dancer Susana Elena will perform at Fairview Library this Saturday, Oct. 8, at 2:30 p.m.
The free 45-minute program educates and entertains children ages four years and up, and their families.
Susana presents a variety of different dances, provides short descriptions of them, and
encourages audience interaction. During the course of the program, children learn how to
do palmas (handclaps to rhythm), flamenco arm and hand movements, and jaleos (words
of encouragement such as Bravo, Ole’).
At show’s end they are invited onstage to join in a rumba flamenca danced with scarves. An introductory castanet lesson will be offered to those interested afterward.
Like Los Angeles’ varied multicultural makeup, Spanish flamenco dance contains a global potpourri of influences, including those from the Middle East, India, Iberian folk melodies, South America, North Africa, and Cuba. Ancient Greek, Celtic, Roman, Jewish, and Christian liturgical influences still exert a subtle pull from the past.
Susana Elena has studied flamenco in Jerez de la Frontera and Sevilla, Spain.
She is the recipient of a certificate from the L.A. County Arts Commission that qualifies her to teach and perform standards-based dance arts in the classroom.
Her mission is to introduce children to a unique art form that may in turn encourage them to continue forging their own artistic paths.
The library is located at 2101 Ocean Park Blvd., Santa Monica.
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