Flamenco Passion Fuels Courage
02 Feb 2012 Leave a Comment
in Culture and Arts, Glamour, NYC Nightlife, Women Photography Tags: dance, fitness, Flamenco, Glamour, gypsy, Le Poisson Rouge, NYC Nightlife
I have everything I had 20 years ago, only it’s all a little lower.
Gypsy Rose Lee
She was only 12 years old when her little heart was swept away by a flamenco performance. Since then, Marina Elana has dedicated her life to a dance that requires grace and the disciplined precision of the “compas” (rhythmic pattern.)
El baile flamenco is known for its emotional intensity, proud stance, expressive use of the arms and rhythmic stamping of the feet. In traditional flamenco, emotional maturity is required to adequately convey the “duende” (soul) of the genre. Thus, unlike other dance forms where dancers must turn professional early to take advantage of youth, many flamenco dancers hit their peak in their thirties and continue to perform well beyond their fifties–much like the way a woman owns more and more of her power with age.
“Classical flamenco,” the style used by dance companies, is characterized by a proud, upright carriage that makes every woman look like the Powerful Goddess that she is. At its most authentic, flamenco is danced informally at gitano (Gypsy) weddings and celebrations in Spain. “Flamenco puro,” the form closest to its gitano origins, is always performed as a solo improvisation.
And in the tradition of the courageous gypsies who originated this dance, Marina now makes New York her new home, designing her destiny with a production “Simplemente Flamenco” at Le Poisson Rouge this Friday, Feb. 3, 2012. Ole!
© Sharon Birke
201 697 1947
Photography for the Goddess in Every Wife & Mother
Powerful Goddess is a trademark of DoubleSmart LLC
xoxox
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Feathers of Freedom
25 Nov 2011 Leave a Comment
in Body Image, Boudoir Photography, Health and Wellness, Lifestyle, Mind and Body, NYC Nightlife, Personalized Gifts, Women Photography Tags: birdcage, Body Image, boudoir photography, burlesque, dance, empowerment, entertainment, freedom to choose, Glamour, mind and body, NYC Nightlife, ostrich fans, pin up, self confidence, self help, thanksgiving, therapy, unique gift ideas, women photography
The function of freedom is to free someone else.
“You have a bird?,” inquired the woman standing behind me at checkout. I was holding a big birdcage so my answer could have gone a few different ways.
“No, I don’t,” I winked. “It’s a reminder that my bird is free!”
She grinned.
This Thanksgiving, I celebrate our freedom to choose by sharing the true story of a woman who liberated herself in fine feathery style. Kitty Cavalier reveals:
I wasn’t always the confident life of the party. For most of my life, I was suicidally depressed with a severe eating disorder. My world revolved around my body, my weight and what diet I was on or not. I wore long sleeves and long pants even in the summertime. I made up crazy excuses so friends wouldn’t take me to the beach. Getting undressed became traumatic even for the simple routine of taking a shower in the privacy of my own home.
Underneath all this shame was a deep seated belief that if only I were pretty enough, thin enough, charismatic enough, successful enough, fill-in-the-blank enough, my life would be better. My body became the battleground of my grief, shame, fear, anxieties and I hated it for not cooperating with my wishes. Then one evening, I went to see a burlesque show…
Click here for more on Kitty’s story and her School of Charm and Cheek.
Which freedom will you celebrate this Thanksgiving?
© Sharon Birke
Photography for the Goddess in Every Wife & Mother
Powerful Goddess is a trademark of DoubleSmart LLC
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