Carmela: Yes! It is the farruca rhythm. The farruca was my fathers signature piece. I will be incorporating some of his steps with my own. This will be the first time I have used his steps.

Carmela: We met for the first time at his memorial service in Lancaster, PA. It was important for me to stay in contact with the people he has worked with in the past to keep his legacy alive. From Spain I had contacted Julia with an idea for a program I wanted to do with her and Flamenco Ole. Through a grant from Dance Advance we were able to present it at the Painted Bride a few years ago.

Carmela: No, flamenco is different from the ballet. It is an emotion. I am presenting an emotion through my hands, the way I move my arms what I do inside a rhythm with it. We have traditional steps. It is what I do as a dancer working closely with the guitarist that define who we are as individual artists.

Carmela: We started with the rhythm. I would tell Carlos were I wanted a falseta and he would have ideas. It is a total collaboration between the the two of us.

Carmela: We rehearse three hours everyday.

Carmela: He was my father, he was bigger than life. He was a beautiful statue to me. I didn’t see him as the world did -as a dancer. I saw him as my father. I am one of three children. My sister is a famous classical Spanish dancer in Spain and my brother is also a famous flamenco dancer.

Carmela: Classical Spanish dance is similar to the ballet and danced while playing castanets. It is a very difficult form of dance.

Carmela: We have in the past toured with my father. It is very hard for us to schedule anything together now because we all have very busy careers.

Carmela: A few years ago, I along with another dancer were invited to perform in Russia. We were in St. Petersburg, Moscow and few other cities. It was a breath taking trip.

Carmela: Not at all. Flamenco is everywhere!