All a bit fluffy in my view - I see no indication that Billen has heard of wonderful flamenco artists like Eva Yerbebuena and Antonio Gades. Yet another case of a non-dance critic relying on the press handouts.

The gypsy who bares his body and soul
Andrew Billen Interviews Joaquín Cortés fpr The Times
Joaquín Cortés, the flamenco dancer who broke Naomi Campbell's heart, inflames passion among women and critics with his contemporary, sensual take on a traditional dance form.


Cortés is the most famous flamenco dancer who has ever lived, the headache that quietly throbs in the temples of flamenco purists but quite possibly the saviour of a folk art at a time when folk arts need saving. His offence, and his triumph, is to use his extraordinary technical talent to fuse the traditions of ancient flamenco with the conventions of modern rock stardom.


click for more (if you're short of things to do)

<small>[ 12 March 2003, 06:51 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

Billen calls Cortes "the most famous flamenco dancer who has ever lived." That's quite an outrageous statement, the sort that I've seen in a number of articles about dancers. I always assume the people who make these statements are not very knowledgeable about dance.