Flamenco and Ballet Español
The UTRGV Ballet Español Program intertwines dance and music studies. With interdisciplinary support from the Center and development opportunities at events, Sonia Chapa plans to create a major and/or a minor in flamenco studies. The Flamenco program will focus on the three components of Flamenco: the study of flamenco guitar (guitarra), flamenco dance (baile), and singing flamenco (cante). Other instrument studies that can be incorporated into Flamenco studies include: percussion, flute, and violin. Future goals are to create an inclusive program that collaborates with other faculty and artists to focus on increased enrollment at UTRGV and recruiting new students from local school systems in south Texas and Latin America.
The current Ballet Español program provides students the opportunity to study a great range of Spanish dance styles, including bailes folkloricos representing different regions of Spain, flamenco, the art of the Roma (“Gypsies”) of Spain such as Alegrias, Tangos, Solea, Bulerias, Siguiriyas and Escuela Bolera, a classical style from the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries that combines classical ballet principles with typical Spanish arm movements, castanets, and flamenco footwork. The Ballet Español presents formal public concerts and school concerts every spring and smaller events on campus and for the community throughout the year.
