26 January 2025

(With Maria de Huelva at Poplar Union, July 2023)

‘I was bitten by the flamenco bug’ - This is an expression my first flamenco dance teacher used to describe her initiation to and passion for the art form.

When people ask me how I started flamenco, common expectations would be that I might’ve seen a live flamenco show in Spain and instantly fell in love with it, or I might’ve studied Spanish at college and expanded the cultural interest, or I might’ve trained in some other dance form and switched the genre, or something like that. Quite a few people also fall into the trap of assuming that Japanese people have a tendency to like flamenco, but I didn’t start it due to my nationality or cultural background, or even liking it.

My encounter with flamenco was an accident.

It wasn’t the plan

More than 20 years ago, I was looking for an Irish dance class, as I had an Irish boyfriend at that time. As if guided by fate, Irish dance wasn’t an option in the programme of the community centre in the area where I used to live. My interest in Irish dance, however, was superficial (just like the relationship itself which broke up later), and I didn’t bother to extend my search further. Instead, I shifted the direction to look for another form of dance class in the borough.

Although I used to enjoy going to a gym every morning, at that particular time I wanted to do some exercise in a more entertaining way: dance. I flicked through the list of dance classes provided by the community centre, looking for an alternative to Irish dance. One seeming benefit of Irish dance for me was that I wouldn’t need partnering with someone whom I didn’t know. Unfortunately, the list was full of such dances for which you would need a partner: ballroom dance, salsa, Argentinian tango, etc… Checking each option, I kept dismissing them: ‘no, not for me’. I recall that ballet was there too, but I assumed it’d be too hard for an adult beginner (at that time, my childhood desire for ballet was suppressed in my complicated memory).

Continuing the search, I stumbled across a particular word for which I didn’t see a ‘no’ factor: flamenco.

‘Flamenco…?’ I vaguely remembered that I’d seen on TV a fragment of a female dancer in a red dress, showing off her grace and lots of arm movements. Yeah, why not…? I wouldn’t need a dance partner, and the arm movements would help to relieve my stiff shoulders. That was it. My application was quickly sent.

I didn’t start flamenco out of love. Love developed afterwards.

(A gift from a friend)

The first class, and…

In my initiation, in the very first class, I didn’t even know that you were supposed to wear healed shoes. Among lots of new students I was probably the only one in trainers. After some footwork sections, the teacher asked, ‘who is making the squeaky noise?’ Shortly afterwards, I popped into ‘El Mundo’, the flamenco shop in Duke Street, to get my first flamenco shoes.

(These are my current shoes - my first pair were all black.)

As the training progressed, I grew a passion for learning different types of choreography, listening to mesmerising flamenco guitar (my liking for cante came by much, much later) and preparing for performing on stage. It was also exciting to make a circle of lovely friends through the common enjoyment: flamenco.

One day, I sensed a connection of my own body with the earth through the wooden floor in the studio - not literally, but figuratively. The wooden floor wasn’t just a percussion board but also a medium to be transported to the depth of the other world. I’m not particularly a spiritual person and I don’t remember what triggered it, but such a mystical image suddenly captured me. Maybe it was the bite by the flamenco bug. People might call it ‘duende’ but I don’t know. Whatever that was, I’ve been penetrated by the art form that I could pursue.

London - Tokyo - London

When my student visa was about to expire, I moved back to my homeland, Japan, where there is a massive flamenco fan base. But I couldn’t be one of them. Having too many choices of flamenco classes available in Tokyo, I couldn’t decide what to do. Nearly two years passed when I got struck by the charm of this particular dancer who had tangible grace on stage - her ‘aire’ and ‘arte’ moved me to tears. I finally encouraged myself to take up a class again with this special artist.

In London, most flamenco dance teachers would focus on praise and encouragement for students, like my first teacher Gaby. In contrast, in Tokyo, at least in my case, your teacher could be quite strict and you would receive endless corrections until you start to feel like giving up… Surviving that kind of enduring phase, I realised that such strictness came from deep respect and affection towards the flamenco art itself. Thanks to such uncompromised corrections and guidance, I resumed flamenco dance quite positively when I returned to London, attending many classes by different teachers every week.

Having gone through some ups and downs, highs and lows, I allowed myself to stand on my own feet rather than relying on a particular teacher. I still keep in touch with most of my previous teachers who have inspired me, guided me and treated me with kindness.

(With Jacqueline Wilford ‘La Joaquina’ and Gemma de la Cruz at Bread & Roses, February 2012)

What my heart says

I launched my website with the project name ‘Baile Plus’ in June 2020 during the pandemic, after having some deep reflections, including the possibility of premature death. What my heart said was that I didn’t want to die as ‘an office worker’ but ‘an artist’. While keeping my full time job, I decided to establish my artist identity as well in order to nurture the little dreamer inside me.

As of now, I not only dance but also play cajón, practise guitar, do some extra stuff… Tasting many plateaus and downfalls as well as some small breakthroughs, now, here I am - I may have come quite far, but I’m still developing, still searching for the meaning of flamenco to me. The important thing is that I’m enjoying this journey, and I’m not alone. We’re connected through flamenco and arts.