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"We invited Amarita to run Flamenco sessions as part of our school 'Spanish Day'. Amarita really impressed both children and staff with her beautiful clothing and exciting dancing workshops. She was very flexible and addressed children of all age groups in a kind and dedicated manner. Amarita encouraged all children to move in a variety of ways and to use Spanish to accompany their actions. A fun day was certainly had by all, with thanks to you Amarita!"
Helen Pinnington
Much Woolton Catholic Primary School, Liverpool
"The children thoroughly enjoyed the workshop, they were buzzing with their new dance moves and keen to repeat the performance. The flamenco teaching really enriched our Spanish day and the children got to learn more about the culture and language."
Claire O'Keeffe
Hanwell Fields Community School, Banbury
"Having attended one of Amarita's introductory flamenco classes following Rafael's 2005 Oxford Playhouse appearance, I was most keen for my A Level students to experience flamenco both as a performance skill and as a means to transpose play texts from page to stage. Consequently a workshop was arranged for a group of girls preparing Lorca's "The House of Bernada Alba" for performance in March 2006 as part of their A2 practical exam.
Amarita introduced the girls to flamenco as a way to bring to life Lorca's concerns of female oppression and the impact of social expectation on the individual. As well as teaching them a short routine, she provided an overview of the art form that became the backbone of their piece, juxtaposed with a more naturalistic style of acting. The girls were inspired by the experience and went on to create a brilliant piece of theatre. Future workshops are anticipated, including ones for GCSE students who would benefit from an introduction to the genre of dance-drama."
Oliver Hogben, Drama Department
The School of St Helen and St Katherine
"Thank you very much for an excellent Flamenco dance session yesterday. The children really enjoyed the experience.
You managed to capture a wide ability range including PMLD, SLD and ASD.
Each child took away a special memory whether it be dressing up, wearing a flower or learning to dance!
Thank you once again for a wonderful workshop."
Jane Wallington, Headteacher
Mabel Pritchard School
"I have just brought my 8 year-old son home from a one-off Flamenco session held in SS Philip and James C of E Primary School and I wanted to let you know how much I appreciated it - or rather more importantly, how much HE appreciated it.
My son has quite severe Special Needs (Global Development Delay, Hypotoma, Hypermobile Joints, Very little expressive language)) but no formal diagnosis. One thing he dearly loves is music and dancing, so you can imagine how much he enjoyed himself in this special session. I was particularly impressed by how included he was made to feel. There was nothing he was excluded from, and the lady who was taking the session was absolutely marvellous with him, making sure he understood exactly what to do. I did not have to support him once.
Sessions such as this are absolutely invaluable for fostering my son's confidence in a mainstream setting, as well as confidence in his own abilities and choices. And in this case all of this and more was achieved without a second thought for any 'possible difficulties' we might encounter. An added bonus was that I discovered how keen a sense of rhythm my son actually has!!!
So many, many thanks for offering this one-off Flamenco session. It was thoroughly enjoyable and equally thoroughly beneficial from a Special Educational Needs Perspective. I only wish that this were a regular arrangement! And thanks and congratulations too to the instructor of this session. Her openness and sensitivity made my son's experience a very positive one."
Andrea Swinton
"Amarita ran 3 sessions for an after-school club at Marcham C of E Primary School. There was a lot of instant interest and after the first session, a significant number of boys signed up following the enthusiastic reports. Amarita was warm and engaging and the children soon picked up somem of the more complex rhythms involved in Flamenco dance. They were encouraged and were able to show us what they had learned when exploring their own creative ideas. I was impressed by the qualilty of their dancing. The children thoroughly enjoyed it, as did a number of parents who would come early to pick up their children, drawn in by what they had previously seen and heard. There were a few individuals whose confidence, it was clear, was very much boosted by these sessions and who were able to express themselves in ways not always available to them in school. At the end of the sessions, some parents said that their children were quite keen to continue to do Flamenco dancing and asked about future provision. We would love to do this again with Amarita. She was able to inspire and enthuse and we hope we can do further work with her."
Viv Hutchinson, Headteacher, Marcham CE Primary School
"I have had the pleasure of being taught Spanish dancing by Amarita and of inviting her to teach children at Bicester Community College as part of Dance Week
I have found her enthusiastic, patient, conscientious and highly professional. Her lessons are fun and effective. Amarita manages to break down complicated steps so that all pupils can grasp them surprisingly quickly. She knows insitinctively how much can be done in order to create a feeling of achievement.
She is an accomplished dancer herself and has a deep knowledge of Spanish dance"
Anna Williamson, Teacher of French and Spanish
Bicester Community College
"We invited Amarita to be part of our Europe Day. She arrived promptly and looked very much the part in a glamorous yellow flamenco dress and blue shawl. She demonstrated several dances with castanets having talked to the year group (150 year 7 students) about Flamenco, its origins and Spain.
Her workshops were excellent, engaging both boys and girls and teaching them rhythms, gradually building them up to use music, so there was a real sense of achievement. Amarita held six workshops of 30 students and interestingly worked slightly differently with them all. She engaged the children and her expectations were excellent. For Year 7 it was very exciting."
Karen Cooper, Head of Year 7
Wood Green School
"The students really enjoyed their flamenco dancing session with Amarita, it gave them a new insight into the world of Spanish dancing and was carried out in a most relaxing, entertaining and professional manner.''
Dale Duffin
Uppingham Community College
"I write to give reference for Amarita Vargas who has taught Flamenco at our school on a couple of occasions for the absent dance teacher.
I was extremely happy with the way Amarita conducted the classes which were well structured and appealed to all three age groups of mixed abilities from 6 to 16 years old. A sixteen year old boy in the middle of AS Level went in extremely tense and came out smiling and chatting!
I would certainly recommend her for future teaching posts."
Julia Howson, Principal
Stagecoach Abingdon
"I would like to confirm how much my Stagecoach students enjoyed their recent workshops with Amarita. I had heard of Amarita’s work through another Stagecoach school and she came highly recommended.
She prepared different material for all three age groups: 6-9 year olds, 9-12 year olds and 12-16 year olds.
We also had the pleasure of a classical guitarist playing the music which really added to the atmosphere created.
All the students seemed to enjoy the challenge and embraced the style with enthusiasm thanks to Amarita.
I would therefore recommend Amarita’s workshops to other organisations and individuals"
Eirian Davies, Principal
Stagecoach Henley, High Wycombe and Maidenhead
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