Teachers
Afifa Lahbabi
Growing up surrounded by the rhythm of her native Morocco gave Afifa an early appreciation for music and dance. Afifa's formal dance background includes tap, ballet, modern, and intensive flamenco training with Rosario Ancer and Victor Kolstee. Afifa has been a soloist in the Cuadro Flamenco series, a featured soloist in the 2005 and 2007 Vancouver Flamenco Festivals and Flamenco Rosario company dancer in the 2009 festival. Other performances include Los Cuatro Vientos, Ayer y Hoy, Guadalquivir and Mis Hermanas. Afifa performed at the Pemberton Folk Festival in 2004 and 2005. In 2006 she trained intensively for two months in Sevilla, Spain with Alicia Marquez, Adela Campallo, Belen Maya and Mercedes Ruiz. In 2009, Afifa trained intensively for 6 weeks in Jerez de La Frontera, Spain with Andres Peña, Isabel Bayón, Ana Maria Lopez and Manuela Carpio, returning again in 2010 to further her training with Rafaela Carrasco, Manuela Carpio, Ana Maria Lopez, Mercedes Ruiz, and Andres Peña. Since 2002, she has danced at Kino Cafe and other local Vancouver venues, leading her to become a local favorite and is a member of Flamenco Alcalá.
