Bringing flamenco back home

A Spanish woman living in North Clare will take to the stage in Ennis, Galway and Derry this month in a show reflective of her Andalusian heritage.

Fatima Lucia is the leader and director of Flamenco company ‘Al Andar’ and has been teaching Flamenco dance in Galway since 1993 when she settled in Ireland.
Al Andar’s new show, Esencias, is a collaboration with renowned Spanish troupe Alma Flamenca and includes dancer/choreographer, Fatima, along with Felipe de Algeciras, singer Olayo Jimenez and guitarist, Pedro Viscomi.
While Fatima has toured Ireland on several occasions along with other musicians and dancers, this will be her first tour here with Alma Flamenca.
The show will combine the magnetism of the Clare resident’s own dance style, Felipe’s powerful footwork the intricate beats of Viscomi’s guitar and Olayo’s compelling singing.
“A special feature of this tour and a real treat will be the inclusion of Felipe de Algeciras in the group. Felipe is a national figure amongst male Flamenco dancers in Spain. His powerful footwork can be heard throughout the movie The Mask of Zorro starring Antonio Banderas. He also choreographed the film Dot the I (El Punto Sobre La I) with Gael Garcia Bernal,” said Fatima.
Fatima lives and raised her family in the Burren, a long way from her native Cadiz, the heartland of Flamenco.
“I used to dance as a child but when I wanted to study Flamenco more seriously, I went to Grenada. It is hard to describe Flamenco. You have to see it to really understand. It is very powerful art form. It is dance and music and I’m a dancer so from my perspective, I see it as a very powerful and very expressive dance and very personal because you create your own style as a dancer,” Fatima explained.
“It is not a social dance, it is an artistic dance. It is not like salsa or set dancing because it is mostly a solo dance. It is something spiritual and something you do for yourself. It is something you never finish learning either.
“When I hear the music I have to dance it. Music is an energy that makes me move. I love dancing but Flamenco is a raw form of music and it is emotional and it is very primitive. It comes from deep within. A lot of people would cry at performances because they reach into the soul,” she continued.
Fatima’s talents have also been spotted by a number of Irish musicians and dancers with whom she has toured including Seán Keane, Arty McGlynn, Martin O’Connor and the Cunningham family, combining sean nós with Flamenco. Fatima appears as solo dancer on the latest Seán Keane DVD, The Irish Scattering.
Al Andar will perform with Alma Flamenca in Glór on Thursday, June 10 and the Town Hall Theatre in Galway on Friday, June 11.