Tara studied Petenera with María del Mar Moreno and in the mornings took a Tangos course with Tatiana Ruiz at the Acadamia Chiqui de Jerez. Lynn studied Bulerías por Soleá with Mercedes Ruiz, Soleá with Manuel Liñan and Sarah studied Farruca with Isabel Bayón and Alegrias (with bata de cola) with Olga Pericet.
There were various shows over the Festival taking place in the Teatro Villamarta, highlights including "Quiero tu cante" Compañía María del Mar Moreno with singers Antonio Malena, David Lagos, Manuel de Malena, Juana la del Pipa and La Macanita. Later at midnight at the Bodega Los Apóstoles, "Mujeres" with singers Juana la del Pipa, Dolores Agujeta and La Macanita proved to be a treat for cante lovers.
Compañía Joaquín Grilo performed "Leyenda personal" on Sunday evening which won the Premio de la Crítica del XIV Festival de Jerez, video footage of the show can be found hereSingers José Valencia and Carmen Grilo were outstanding with Dorantes performing on piano as a special collaboration.
Compañía Belén Maya featured young dancer Olga Pericet, el premio de Artista Revelación del Festival de Jerez 2010, the show "Bailes alegres para personas tristes" was a beautiful mix of light and shade with stunning costumes which included Belén Maya in a bright pink bata de cola.
La Farruca performed to a small audience at a new venue for the Festival, Sala Paúl. She performed an Alegrías and Soleá with three singers, Mara Rey, Piquina, Pedro Heredia with Juan Requena on guitar.
Compañía Rafael Campallo featuring Rafael's sister Adela Campallo offered an exciting evening with a tribute to Triana in Sevilla.
The final evening at Teatro Villamarta was a tribute to Fernando Belmonte. A concept by Joaquín Grilo, the show featured artists including Joaquín Grilo, Fernando Belmonte, Ángel Muñoz, Fernando Galán, Christian Lozano, Alicia Márquez and Úrsula López.
The group went to a few Peñas which were organised by the Festival to see local singers and guitarists perform. These were quite enjoyable if a little staged and lacking some involvement by the late-night festival goers.
Other shows outside the Teatro Villamarta the group went to see were Pepe Torres and Almudena Serrano at Sala Compañía, cantaors Antonio Reyes and Rancapino at the Bodega Los Apóstoles and Fernando de la Morena and El Torta on the final evening provided a fantastic end to a great week of study and performance at the Festival de Jerez.Details on Dublin-based Flamenco Puro can be found here: http://www.flamencopuro.org/
