After taking Egypt by storm last year with her Flamenco Republic, the great flamenco dancer María Pagés is back with one of her most successful performances: “Songs, Before a War.
This time, the María Pagés Dance Company will perform at the launch of the National Fund to Fight Viral Hepatitis, an initiative of the Liver Institute and the Ministry of Health, under the auspices of First Lady Suzanne Mubarak. This project is sponsored by CEPSA Egypt SA, Roche, Schering-Plough, the American Chamber of Commerce in Egypt, Sofitel and the cooperation of the Sawiris Foundation and the Embassy of Spain in Cairo.
María Pagés is considered one of the greatest innovators in contemporary flamenco. Now at the peak of her career, the dancer/ choreographer from Seville has a solid status in the international dance scene. She combines the basic codes of flamenco with innovative techniques while remaining faithful to its original spirit.
Maria Pagés started her professional career in the company of Antonio Gades, performing in “Carmen and “Bodas de Sangre two landmarks of flamenco dance taken to the cinema by Carlos Saura. In 1990 she established her own company and in 1999 she began a new project based in the Boulevard Theatre of Torrelodones (Madrid).
“Songs, Before a War was created from the nostalgic experience of listening to old songs. “From those evocative, fun-loving and peaceful sounds, we feel again like children playing joyfully. Those simple verses have inspired the ideas of this choreographic experiment.
“Songs, before a war is dedicated to the memory of late Spanish writer Manuel Vazquez Montalban. It will be performed at the Cairo Opera House on June 18 and at the Bibliotheca Alexandrina on June 20.
