The language of the body is a central text in the study of flamenco on the global stage. From the records of the Inquisition, to 16th century literature, to European travel diaries, the Spanish dancer beguiles and fascinates. The word flamenco evokes the body of a sensuous and rebellious woman-the bailaora-whose lascivious movements seduce the audience, only to reject their invasive gaze with a stomp of defiance. The flamenco dancer's body is an agent of ideological resistance, conveying a desire for subjectivity and autonomy and implying deeply held ideas about history, national identity, femininity and masculinity. This collection of new essays by flamenco historians, critics and cultural theorists provides an overview of flamenco scholarship, illuminating flamenco's narrative and addressing some of the stereotypes that exist in flamenco studies. The contributors bring new information into flamenco's chronology, offer fresh perspectives on age-old themes and suggest new paradigms for flamenco as a cultural practice.

This analytical history traces representations of flamenco dance in Spain and abroad from the twentieth century through the present, using flamenco histories, film appearances of flamenco, accounts of live performances, and interviews with practitioners to map the emergence of a global dance practice. Focusing on the stereotype of the dancing body as the site of political and social tensions, it places that image in an international dialogue between tourists, flamenco purists, dictators, poets, filmmakers, and dancers. After laying the groundwork for an analysis of flamenco historiography, the text delves into such topics as images of the female flamenco dancer in films by Luis Bunuel, Carlos Saura, and Antonio Gades; the lasting stereotypes of flamenco bodies and Andalusian culture originated in Prosper Merimee's novella Carmen; and, the ways in which contemporary flamenco dancers such as Belen Maya, Pastora Galvan, and Rocio Molina negotiate the flamenco stereotype of Carmen as well as the return of an idealized Spanish feminine that pervades 'traditional' flamenco. Informed by political and cultural theory as well as works in feminist and gender studies, this ambitious study illuminates the conflicting stories that compose the history of flamenco.