Elba Hevia y Vaca, Artistic/Executive Director of Pasion y Arte
Elba Hevia y Vaca was born in La Paz, Bolivia, where she studied classical Spanish dance from the ages of five to thirteen, when she became enthralled by the power of flamenco. Ms. Hevia y Vaca started her studies in Spain under great Flamenco Masters and continues a yearly pilgrimage to Sevilla and immerses in the study of the tradition with great Flamenco Masters such as Isabel Bayon, Rafaela Carrasco, Rosario Toledo, Alejandro Granados, Andres Marin to name a few.
In 2000, she founded Pasion y Arte. Under her visionary guidance, Pasión y Arte has achieved widespread notoriety for its unique dance forms that are simultaneously steeped in tradition and sometimes perilously avant-garde. Hevia y Vaca has choreographed five hour-long works of feminist neo-flamenco for Pasión y Arte. Hevia y Vaca’s work has received prestigious fellowship from the Independence Foundation, and grants from the Barra Foundation, Dance Advance (a program funded by the Pew Charitable Trusts and administered by the University of the Arts), Hispanics in Philanthropy, the Leeway Foundation, the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, Project Stream, the Samuel S. Fels Fund and the Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation. She has received professionalization support from Artists U, Arts Action Research and Team Office. Pasión y Arte is a proud member of the Pennsylvania Performing Artists on Tour, representing Pennsylvania’s artistic excellence to audiences in the U.S. and abroad.
In 2008, she opened the Pasión y Arte Conservatory with the mission of providing a disciplined environment for teaching the formal structure of flamenco. It officially institutionalizes Pasión y Arte’s calling to preserve, strengthen, and disseminate the flamenco arts of dance (baile), music (toque – guitar – and cajon – box drum), and deep singing (cante).
Kumiko Koide, Assistant Artistic Director
Kumiko Koide was born in Tokyo, Japan. She began the studies of Flamenco in Tokyo with the Lucia Hashimoto Flamenco Institute and thereafter with Ami, and Naoko Kaeyama.
Since 2005, Kumi has eagerly studied flamenco in Spain. She studied in Sevilla with Angelita Vargas, Lola Jaramillo, Rosario Toledo, Concha Vargas, among others, and in Granada with Fajardo, Luis de Luis and Esther de Marin. In 2007, Kumiko was a finalist in the Flamenco Maruwa Competition in Japan. Throughout her career, she has performed in many Flamenco theater shows and tablaos in Tokyo and has also instructed many workshops in Japan.
Since Kumi’s move to Philadelphia, she has studied with Soledad Barrio, La China, Omayra Amaya. Kumi currently dances with Pasion y Arte.
Pasion y Arte Conservatory Winter Schedule
Garage Studio
6411 Overbrook Avenue
Philadelphia, PA 19151Two block from the R5 Overbrook train station and 4 blocks from the Trolley
Classes have resumed this week with the same schedule as before, except with some palo changes…. so please stop by and join me in the exploration of this amazing art form that we all love so very much!
Tuesdays: Advanced/Intermediate (Hevia y Vaca)
7-8 Technique- Upper Body and Footwork
8-9 Choreography- Seguiriyas
Wednesdays: Beginner/Advanced Beginners (Hevia y Vaca)
6:30-7:30- Beginner Sevillanas
7:30-9 – Flamenco Technique and Choreography por Tangos and Solea
Thursdays- Beginner/Intermediate Sevillanas (Kumiko Koide)
6:30-7:30 – Beginner Sevillanas
7:30-8:30 – Intermediate Sevillanas
Saturdays: Beginner (Hevia y Vaca)
10-11- Beginner Sevillanas
11-12:30- Beginner Flamenco Technique and Choreography por Tangos and Solea
12:30-1:30- Childrens Classes- Introduction to Flamenco rhythms, arms and footwork and Sevillanas.
Beginner Flamenco Description
Flamenco dance is an expressive art form with ritual significance. It is fused from elements from different cultures – Gypsy (or Roma), North African Moors, and southern Spain. As a consequence, flamenco possesses a wide variety of melodies and rhythms that together can express the deepest and most complex essence of being human.
The beginning student is introduced to the simpler palos (rhythms) of flamenco through a series of specific studies:
Flamenco posture
Torso and shoulder exercises for flamenco movement
Exercising the wrist, palm and fingers (hand movements)
Exercising the head and arms
Basic head and arm positions
Exercising the hips
Putting the exercises into sequence
Postures for footwork and basic blows
Sequences of footwork with body and skirt movement to the various flamenco rhythms
Exercises of palmas (hand clapping) to increase rhythmic understanding
Sequences of movements with application of all the above in the various flamenco rhythms and the different dances
Intermediate Flamenco Description
Basic knowledge of the various flamenco palos (rhythms), including Soleares, Alegrias, Tangos. Students use the dance steps and techniques they have acquired in BEGINNING FLAMENCO to get closer to performing these dances properly. Students learn more complex arm and body movements and more complicated footwork. Particular emphasis is placed on:
Strengthening the student’s familiarity with the compas using more difficult footwork techniques
Creating more complex arm movements and coordinating them with the footwork
Understanding the structure of a dance
Learning to comprehend the communication between singer, dancer, and guitarist that takes place in a dance
Beginning to understand the concept of improvisation by applying all of the above
All 1 1/2 hour classes are available with a 6 class card, all 1 hour classes.
Student discount and scholarships are available upon request.
For more information contact me at pasionyarteflamenco@gmail.com or call at (267) 235-5685 or on our Web site but stay tuned for the launch of our new web site in mid January!
