Reviews

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"Brisas sizzles with hot moves and music"- Contra Costa Times

"The Flamenco legacy of Lola Montes lives on in the pure dance poetry of Carolina Lugo's Brisas de España.  The dazzling colors and passionate energy of this troupe will leave you breathless."~ Diablo Magazine

“Lugo is a woman with complicated memories and sorrows… When she dances, she conveys depths of melancholy, devilishness or joy through the apt placement of her torso. The tilt of her ribs, for example, is just right to create that essential image of dignity, slight arrogance and emotional daring without which Flamenco is just another collection of steps and tunes. As a musician she’s equally sophisticated, inhabiting the music in the middle of every beat, with a command that is neither haughty nor proud, but self-assured, at ease.She dances the way some French cook—with what appears to be a graceful inevitability discovered on the spot.  ~ Ann Murphy, Dance Critic for Dance View West     

 
"Lugo who earned her Spanish Dance stripes early on with veteran performer Lola Montes, proves herself adapt in choreographing story dances based on the traditions of classical court dance... pure dance poetry."~ Marilyn Tucker, Contra Costa Times Dance Critic
 

"...the Spanish idiom had orchestral color galore made even more vivid with the suave and energetic dancing of Carolina Lugo's Brisas de España Flamenco Dance Company.  The dancers bring flair to De Falla's exuberant 'Three Cornered Hat' in a masterstroke of programming and show business...Elegant, fiery and skilled, they are a formidable troupe and make the De Falla all it ought to be - exciting in every way."~ Jack Neal's Music Review, Reno

 

"Brisas - offered the crowd a taste of rousing, dramatic dance."~ Oakland Tribune

 

"The Camellia Symphony Orchestra treated its audience to hassle-free, ticketless travel Saturday at Memorial Auditorium as it led a musical journey to California's alter-ego, "España! Flamenco dancing by the seven-member Brisas de España from the Bay Area added a new and welcome dimension to a Camellia Symphony concert as the troupe's fancy footwork helped illustrate and punctuate de Falla's ballet. The troupe performed spiritedly to the composer's quintessentially complex Spanish melodies and rhythms. The orchestra members provided the piece's powerful musical underpinnings, and the dancers gave it style and grace. In all, the two groups appeared to captivate the large audience with their bravura and skill. Brisas' artistic director, Carolina Lugo, choreographed a small but intense operetta. Following de Falla's lead, it was full of steamy and fiery emotion as well as naive and flirtatious interplay. The choreography incorporated classic flamenco steps as well as more balletic elegance. The dancers clicked and swirled their way across Memorial Auditorium's sprung wood floor, using its resonance to good effect as the orchestra kept up the blazing pace." ~ Patricia Beach Smith -- Sacramento Bee Arts Critic

"It is when Lugo and her daughter Carolé Acuña dance together that the women unearth a new dimension in dance..." ~ Ann Murphy, Oakland Ttibune

 

Read Complete Reviews and Articles

Review, The Sacramento Bee- February 21, 2005

Contra Costa Times- July 22, 2000

Review, Nevada Dance Review - Nov 5, 2000

Oakland Tribune- July 20, 2000

San Francisco Chronicle- August 3, 2001

Contra CostaTimes - October 23, 2005

Cover, Vision Latina - 2001

Vision Latina - 2001

This Week -July 16, 1999

This Week -December 3, 1999

Review, Contra CostaTimes -July 14, 2002  

Review, Contra CostaTimes -July 27, 1999

Alive East Bay-Auguest 2007

Contra Costa Times -October 22, 2006

 

IN LOVING MEMORY OF  GINO D'AURI -February 13, 2007 (SF Chronicle)

We are extremely saddened with the passing of a Great Musician, Artist and Dearest Friend, GINO D'AURI. He passed away the past year in Los Angeles.   The Flamenco world has lost one of the Best Guitarists, Artists and Musician of his generation and the 20th Century. We will miss his artistry, great sense of humor, sensitivity and love of his art. Those of us who had the pleasure and honor of working with him, will never forget him. He lives on in our memories and hearts. -  Carolina Lugo, Carolé Acuña y Richard Tonkin             
               

IN LOVING MEMORY OF RENOWED SPANISH DANCER LOIA MONTES- 1918-2008

Diva in her own right who taught, lead and influenced many generations of young dancers in the span of her long running career as director of her own company, Lola Montes and Her Spanish Dancers.   I was fortunate enough to have been mentored by her and she was instrumental in launching my professional career at the age of 14. I was a member of her company and one of her female lead dancers for 8 years and toured the USA, Canada and Mexico with her dance company.  When I started my own dance company in 1995, Ms. Montes donated costumes, manton's and accessories to my company and continued to mentor me until recently.  For those of us who paid attention to her mentoring, she lectured, taught and guided us about her life experiences and experiences as a dancer and ultimately as an artist. The Flamenco-Spanish Dance community has lost a great dancer, teacher, director and friend. She will live in the hearts and memories of those that she touched. -Carolina Lugo                                                     

 
       

 

 
 

Video Highlight's

Carolina Lugo’s Brisas de España
Flamenco Dance Company

featuring Carolé Acúña