A bailar Sevillanos!

An integral part of the Feria de Abril, now reaching its halfway point here in Seville, is dancing. Sevillanas are a type of flamenco dance (or not, depending on who you talk to), performed in pairs - man-woman or woman-woman. Sevillanas are divided into four parts. While it is not obligatory to wear the flamenca dress, with its swooshing frills and swirling hem, the movement of the fabric adds to the whole effect - and hides any dodgy footwork under a mass of spotty flouncing! These two videos are both from last year - you can only see the dancers' top halves, which confirms my own theory that so long as you curl your hands elegantly above your head, and move and turn at the right moment, you can more or less get away with it. Note the woman in the above video using castañuelas (castanets) - there's a real art to them - not nearly as easy as they look. Not all casetas have live bands, like the one in the second video - many have recorded sevillana songs. Themes of lyrics revolve around love, Seville and Triana. Ladies may be interested in the different hairstyles - the classic is smooth, pulled-back hair in a chignon; the blonde lady has a looser, more relaxed style. This is a joyous dance at a joyous occasion, where all temporal worries are banished to make way for music and song and swirling around the dance floor. I hope its energy and alegria will bring a smile to your face.
Blog published on 18 April 2013