presents 

CONTRATIEMPO

a premiere by Maria Osende Flamenco Co. 

The tension between the musical beauty,  the broken tones of suffering and the unique mood inherent in every move and sound created by the dancer, surprises again and again. These fantastic flamenco artists will arise together ready to give their all and interpret essencial human emotions through this powerfully expressive Spanish art genre.

This is a 19+ years old event.  ID may be requested for entry to the venue.

About the Show

The word CONTRATIEMPO has a double meaning in Spanish;  musically it means “offbeat” and colloquially it means “setback” or “inconvenience”.   Both meanings apply to the show.

In flamenco dance and music,  to mark the contratiempo or “to go against the beat” (ir al contra) means accentuating the weak beats of the rhythm.  Intricate, challenging and fascinating at the same time, the contratiempo is an essential part of the flamenco rhythm, constantly present in the dancers’ footwork, the hand clapping or the  guitar.

This show is the result and the silver lining of one of the countless number of  “contratiempos” we have all experienced over the last two years due to the pandemic.  Back in 2020, Aurelie Brunelle and her musicians were getting ready to come to Halifax to perform at our Flamenco Nights Performance Series at the end of March.  The sudden shut down led to the  show’s cancellation.  Maria Osende’s flamenco dance school quickly moved to online and  Maria invited Aurelie to join her school online as a teacher. Over time both dancers developed a warm working relationship that included online dance  students from Halifax, Montreal and beyond.  CONTRATIEMPO is the silver lining of this set back. Both dancers will be meeting in-person for the first time and performing together for this show.

Aurelie is bringing two excellent flamenco musicians along to Halifax for the show.  Flamenco guitarist “Quique” will delight us with his exquisite and passionate flamenco guitar and compositions.   

This show features flamenco dancer Maria Osende along with Montreal-based flamenco dancer Aurelie Brunelle, singer Alexandra Templier and guitarist Quique.  This is the first time these artists will visit Halifax and also a first time collaboration between them.

A second performance of CONTRATIEMPO will follow at the Osprey Arts Center in Shelburne on July 16 at 8pm.

 

While in Halifax, from Monday July 11 through Wednesday, July 14, the guest artists will offer 3 days of masterclasses in flamenco dance and rhythm in partnership with Flamenco and Ballet Dance School Maria Osende. Find out more about the workshops here 

Atlantic Flamenco Productions is proud to have RBC Wealth Management be our exclusive event sponsor for Contratiempo.

The Flamenco Nights Performance Series is produced by Atlantic Flamenco Productions Society and made possible thanks to the support of Arts Nova Scotia.
 

It's been a while since we were all there together! 

We've made some changes.  To help you feel more comfortable, seating is now assigned, to allow a greater degree of choice and peace of mind. Here is our new seating plan.

 

We sold out the Seahorse so we have been upgraded to the Marquee Ballroom!

The Marquee Ballroom is known as one of the premier venues on Canada's east coast-large capacity, excellent sight lines and great sound. 

Cabaret set up (tables or individual seating available as well as standing options). 
Performance with intermission. Cash wine bar, ATM on location and food menu (19 years+ event).

 

 

The Maria Osende Flamenco Co. brings the Soul of Spain to the Heart of Atlantic Canada. 

Founded by Spanish dancer and choreographer Maria Osende upon moving to Canada in 2004.  Over almost two decades, the company has made a strong mark in Nova Scotia and beyond, touring extensively in the Atlantic provinces, Quebec and Vancouver, as well as performing at countless multicultural festivals across the country. Under the umbrella of “Atlantic Flamenco Productions Society”, the “Maria Osende Flamenco Co” refers to the creative and artistic work of Osende. Its flexible structure allows Osende to produce small and large scale shows, as well as to reconfigure when needed for specific projects. These may involve her Halifax-based core group of dancer and musicians or collaborations with various artists and institutions, as it is the case for CONTRATIEMPO. Osende is the creative force behind the company. Over the last 18 years, she has produced over 30 works, ranging from full-length main stage shows to solos or short choreographies created for special events. Other projects include collaborations and performances with guest artists from Spain and Germany as well as artistic explorations.  Her work continues to evolve over time, at times pushing creative boundaries, while other times remaining deeply rooted in traditional flamenco. 

Bios

Maria Osende

Flamenco dancer

Born in Madrid, Spain, Osende started dancing at the age of seven, deciding shortly after that one day she would  become a professional dancer. At seventeen a Fulbright scholarship allowed her to study ballet at the renowned  School of American Ballet in New York City.  

After a decade of dancing  professionally as a soloist with the Compañia Nacional de Danza in Madrid and with the Berlin Ballet in Germany, Osende’s drive for creation and artistic freedom led her to focus on flamenco and on her Spanish roots. After having studied flamenco extensively at the Escuela de Arte Flamenco Amor de Dios in Madrid, and after a few years of dancing as a freelance flamenco dancer in Berlin, Osende moved to Halifax in 2003 in search of a place to raise her then young family.

Since then,  she has been the motor behind flamenco in our city and province. She has created numerous flamenco shows for her company and toured across Canada. Moving comfortably between tradition and innovation, Osende is known for her artistry and stunning technique. Over the last 18 years, Osende’s “Flamenco and Ballet Dance School Maria Osende” has developed many flamenco dancers, making Halifax one of Canada’s flamenco hotspots.  In 2015 Osende was awarded with the “Established Artist Recognition Award” by Arts Nova Scotia. 

Aurélie Brunelle

Flamenco dancer

Originally from Montréal, Aurélie began dancing in1999 with Sara Rénélik and at the Ballets Divertimento where she was first introduced to flamenco. In 2014, she obtained her bachelor's degree in choreography from Concordia University. Aurélie has visited  Spain multiple times to study flamenco  with Manuela Carpio, Fuensanta la Moneta and Israel Galvan, among others.  In 2011, she joined the Studio Pleamar team as a teacher and La Otra Orilla company as a dancer.  She co-founded the project A.D.A Flamenco with Dominique Soulard in 2018 and presented  her latest work, Transiciones, all over Canada. Aurelie is excited to be back to teaching and performing in Montreal while  pursuing a masters in dance research and creation at the Uqam. This is her first time in Nova Scotia.
AurelieBrunelle.com

Alexandra Templier

Singer

Alexandra Templier is a multidisciplinary vocal artist based in Tio’tig:ke / Montreal.  She studied theater and opera singing (soprano) in Paris, her hometown, adn obtained a Master's research in metaphysics and contemporary poetics (University of La Sorbonne, Paris) .  In 2011 Alexandra moved to Madrid to study flamenco singing with maestro Enrique Vargas as well as at the Casa Patas Foundation. Two years later, she won first prize in the “Cantes de Ida y Vuelta” emerging artist category at the Suma Flamenca Festival in Madrid.  In 2014, she received the Escuela Musica Creativa award for "vocalist of the year". After residing in Spain for five years. In  2016 Alexandra moved to Montreal to pursue her artistic research, which combines the intimate exploration of the human voice through singing (opera, flamenco singing, Indian classical singing, Indian vocal percussion, improvisation) and body in motion. Alongside her artistic research, she has become  a valued member of the Montreal flamenco community and never ceases to collaborate on flamenco projects.

 

Quique

Guitarist

Flamenco and classical guitarist Henry “El Quique” will delight us with his exquisite and passionate playing and compositions. A graduate in classical guitar at the Lawrence Conservatory of Music in Appleton, Wisconsin, Quique's interest and curiosity in music has taken I'm well beyond. After leaving California and moving to Granada, Spain, he studied flamenco guitar with various guitar players including Marcos Palometas and Jose de la Marga. Quique then went on to Ireland to study with guitar player John Walsh and it was in Ireland where he met a beautiful Quebecois lady who ended up bringing him here to Canada. Having also studied Cuban, Brazilian and West African music, Quique composes his own music and works to bring these eclectic styles together. He has been in Montreal for 4 years now where he performs flamenco regularly. He is also the guitarist in the band Azara nominated for best original song in the Canadian Latin Music awards. This is his first time in Nova Scotia.