- Sara Baras
- Spanish Dance
- Spanish culture
- Destinations
Sara Baras was born in Cadiz and began studying dance in San Fernando (Cadiz province) at the school of her mother, Concha Baras, when she was just eight years old. As a member of the troupe Los Niños de la Tertulia Flamenca she travelled all over the regions where flamenco is played and danced before H.M. Doña Sofia, Queen of Spain. At the age of 18 she won first prize in Spanish National Television's competition Gente Joven.
In 1989 she danced with Manuel Morao's Company and performed at the Alhambra 89 Flamenco Theatre Festival in Granada. In 1991 she performed with the same company for two months at the Eduard VII Theatre in Paris. At the 1992 Universal Exhibition in Seville she danced in Manue Morao's show at the Cartuja Auditorium, and later the same year she performed at the Town Hall Theatre in New York.In 1993 the town of Montellano awarded her the Madroño Flamenco, a prize bestowed upon the most outstanding flamenco artist of the year.
In 1994, during the Caja de Ávila Flamenco Week, she danced to accompany the singing of Enrique Morente. In the same year she made a two-month tour of several European countries with Paco Peña's Company. 1994 at the 23rd Festival of Andalusian Song and Dance in Jerez de la Frontera she shared a bill with great flamenco artists. Towards the end of the same year she set out on a tour of Asia, performing in Taipei, Seoul, etc. Sara Baras spent one year (1996-97) dancing alongside Antonio Canales as guest artist in his production entitled Gitano ("Gypsy"). This was presented at the Seville Biennale Festival then traveled to the Madrid Autumn Festival at the Albéniz Theatre and on to the Champs Elysées Theatre in Paris.
In 1997 Sara Baras presented her own troupe to critical and public acclaim at the close of the 37th Cante de las Minas National Flamenco Festival. On April 2, 1998, with her own company made up of herself, seven dancers and seven musicians, Sara launched the show called Sensaciones. Sensaciones is not conventional theatre; it is an exploration of the various forms of flamenco.
At the end of April 1998, as guest artist of the Antonio Canales Flamenco Ballet, Sara Baras took part in the La Huella de España ("Traces of Spain") program organized by the SGAE to celebrate the centenary of Cuban independence. Since October 1998 Sara has presented the TV show Algo más que flamenco ("Something More Than Flamenco") on the TVE-2 channel.
