Lonely Planet India – August 2019

PHOTOGRAPH:

YADID

LEVY/LONELYPLANET

it’s a 20-minute walk from the Casa de

la Memoria across the Isabel II Bridge.

Make a note: there’s no sign outside,

it’s elbow-in the-face busy, and the

place never opens until after

midnight. While fluent Spanish

is not a prerequisite, a few key

phrases such as ‘dos cervezas,

por favor’ (‘two beers, please’)

will smooth the landing. Shows,

once they start, are overseen by

a formidable ex-flamenco dancer

named Anselma, and are loud and

boisterous.Unlessyou’reextremelypushy,

or a localflamencocelebrity,it’sunlikely

you’llgeta seat,althoughyouwillbe

expectedto buya drinkat thebar(entry

is free).Performancesgoonforas long

as themusicianskeepplaying.Don’t

expectchoreographeddancing– rather

membersof theaudiencehavinga go,

drunkor otherwise.Thebiggestlure:

there’snothinglikeit anywhereelsein

Seville...nay,Spain...nay,theworld.

Shouldyouwishto explorethearea

further,you’llfindTrianaawashwith

old-schooltapasbarsandmustychurches

(CallePagésdelCorro49).

5.PalacioAndaluz

Flamencopuristsliketo quietlydismiss

thePalacioAndaluzas a destination

fortourists.But,whilethebulkof the

audiencemightbeflamencooutsiders

keento logeverythingontheircamera

phones,thecriticismsaren’tstrictlyfair.

ThePalacio’spopularitydoesn’tcheapen

thetalentof its performers,mostof whom

aremastersof theirart.Occupyingspace

in anoldwarehouseonthecuspof the

Macarenadistrict,a shorttaxiride

northeastof Triana,thisis oneof Seville’s

biggestflamencovenues– a 500-seat

theatrethathostshighly-choreographed

nightlyshowsstarringupto 20singers

anddancers.Intimacyisn’tthedealhere.

Thinkof theseskilledif slightlycontrived

performancesas moreof a spectacle

thananinteractiveexperience:a ‘greatest

hits’of flamenco.You’llhearsadsoleares,

manicbuleriasandjauntyalegrias–

justnotseasonedaficionados

yelling‘óle!’ fromthesidelines

(www.elflamencoensevilla.com)

6.FundaciónCristina

HeerendeArteFlamenco

Aspiringflamencoartistesneedlook

nofurtherthanthehighly-respected

CristinaHeerenschoolin theTriana

neighbourhood.Setupbyanexpat

Americanin 1996,theHeerenhasmore

than 20 years’forminstructingstudents

in all threeof theflamencoarts:dance,

songandguitar.Its intensivefour-week

coursesin Julyareparticularlypopular

(www.flamencoheeren.com.

1. Sevillanas in
   costume during the
   Feria de Abril
   or April Festival


2. A vintage
   advertising poster
   at Museo del Baile
   Flamenco


3. A spontaneous
   performance at
   Casa de Anselma

3

TRAVEL FOR MUSIC

For more thrilling cultural

destinations, see Lonely

Planet’s Culture Trails

(` 1, 50 0 )

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