Antoñita Singla

Antoñita Singla (born 1948), is a Spanish-born gypsy flamenco dancer and actress. She often went by the stage name Antoñita La Singla or simply "La Singla" but sometimes its written as Antonia Singla.

Early life
She was born as Antonia Singla Contreras in 1948 in the neighborhood Somorrostro de la Barceloneta, in Barcelona. At the time of her birth, this neighborhood was a shanty town and a gypsy community.

A few days after her birth she was in pain so her mother took her to many hospitals in order to see different doctors. Despite the examinations, no accurate medical diagnosis was found. It was thought that the pain was caused by severe meningitis, however, the little girl was left deaf as a result of the pain she suffered during her first months. In 1968, she made a partial recovery from her medical condition.

While she was growing up, La Singla learned to dance rumba, fandango, bulerías and flamenco with considerable skill. Singla began to dance by watching her mother clapping, absorbing the rhythm and turning it into a really remarkable dance full of emotions. It is said that she did not speak fluently until the age of 16.

Career

Singla began her career at the early age of 12, dancing in some taverns in Barcelona. She was known for wearing pants in a bailaor style when performing dramatic dancing, this was something also done by Carmen Amaya and a few other flamenco dancers before her. 

In 1960, she launched her artistic career to the top by participating in the group project Festival Flamenco Gitano in which personalities such as Paco de Lucía, Camarón de la Isla, and El Faraón, among others, participated. This 1965 event was the brainchild of German organizers of Blues and Gospel festivals, who decided to invest in flamenco, later participating in numerous television programs. In addition, the Festival Flamenco Gitano toured Europe and the American continent. The first performance took place in the German capital, Berlin. It is worth noting the fact that La Singla was more famous internationally than in Spain.

In 1963, she performed as an actress and dancer in the film Los Tarantos, directed by Francisco Rovira-Beleta. The film is based on a play by Alfredo Mañas and tells the story of the fierce confrontation between two gypsy families in Barcelona: "Los Tarantos" and "Los Zorongos". At a wedding, Rafael, Taranto, meets Juana, La Zoronga. The two young people, wrapped by the magic of the party, swear eternal love with a pact of blood, and after a night of love, they discover with desperation that they belong to the two rival families. Rafael's mother, seduced by the spell of Juana's dance, overcomes the ancestral hatred, but Juana's father refuses to accept the union. Antoñita La Singla participated in the film as 'Sole', one of the dancers of the clan, along with Sara Lezana, Daniel Martín, Antonio Gades, Antonio Prieto, José Manuel Martín, Margarita Lozano, Juan Manuel Soriano. In addition, thanks to the filming of the movie La Singla was able to meet Carmen Amaya, with whom she was compared too. The film, Los Tarantos was nominated for an Academy Award in 1964 for "Best Foreign Language Film". At present, the film serves as a documentary of the now defunct Somorrostro district.

Another important milestone in the career of Antoñita Singla was her performance in the flamenco club Los Califas, a 1964 flamenco club whose tablao flamenco was inaugurated on October 15, 1965. The club owners heard about her through the artistic manager Antonio Fernández, who assured them that Singla had the blessing of the great Salvador Dalí and his wife Gala as well as the support of Vicente Escudero. A few days later she traveled to Madrid ready to debut in "Los Califas". Obviously, it was not easy to accompany "La Singla", not having the hearing and the speech needed, however she maintained the performance in its entirety. She danced by pure instinct, she did not hear the guitar or the flamenco singer. It was commented that she was going her own way, she was totally independent, and it was the others who had to follow her to give the performance the feeling of unity. This unexpected situation created such a high expectation that the flamenco club ‘’Los Califas’’ was entirely filled with professionals from the flamenco dance community and Singla exceeded all expectations.

Legacy 
Today, Singla lives in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, in Catalonia, Spain far from the tablaos.

On April 15, 2017, one of the brothers of the artist, Juan José Singla Contreras, and his partner, Santiago Parra, opened  a flamenco tablao in Barcelona with the name of La Singla to pay tribute. The location of La Singla is located in front of La Monumental bullring, and it is the first flamenco establishment that opened in the city in 30 years.

See also 

 Flamenco, a genre of Spanish music and dance

References

External links 
 Video: 1960s Antonita Singla dancing at Festival Flamenco Gitano
Video: Antoñita while dancing in 1965 
Video: Fragment of Los Tarantos
Video: La Singla in the Feria

Category:1948 births
Category:Living people
Category:Flamenco dancers
Category:Deaf artists
Category:Spanish female dancers
Category:Artists with disabilities
Category:People from Barcelona