El Bien Parao is a contemporary flamenco performance project in London.
El bien parao is an expression that originates from seguidillas boleras. It refers to the dancer’s ability to hold complicated and imaginative poses in perfect balance at the end of a dance. It was a game, a challenge. The expression bien parao holds within itself the idea of pushing boundaries within the form, of creating magic moments between dancers, of an awareness of tradition with space for imagination and personal style.
El bien parao’s first project is FLOCK:
“Flock” is a study of how we move in a crowd and how we can share a sense of purpose and direction. Inspired by the idea that birds in the city sing louder, we explore the imagery of birds, flight and patterns of survival in the city to expand our individual movement and heighten our awareness of what it is that moves us.
Direction & choreography: Magdalena Mannion & dancers’ own movement
Dancers: Carolina Esteves Elsa Arcaute Nanako Aramaki Janet Lung Miho Charles Yulia McPhearson Michelle Carrier Lina Wirths
Music: Josè Almarcha
Photos: Janet Lung