Today we’d like to introduce you to Justine Grover.
So, before we jump into specific questions about the business, why don’t you give us some details about you and your story.
I started dancing flamenco when I was very young. I remember performing at my school talent show in the 3rd grade and no one – not even the teachers – knew what flamenco was. I continued to study flamenco throughout high school and college and eventually made my way to study in Spain. After I moved back from Spain in 2011, I opened Naranjita – a place where flamenco would be the focus rather than Jazz, Tap or Ballet; a dance studio that was dedicated to the art of flamenco. Flamenco is something I loved for so long and Naranjita is my way of giving back to the art that gave so much to me.
My studio is for the education & celebration of flamenco. We teach children and adults about the art and culture of flamenco, and we give them opportunities to perform, which also helps reach more of the community so that flamenco becomes a much more popular art form.
Great, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Flamenco is a foreign dance with a lot of misconceptions so it is hard to promote when the majority of the people don’t even understand what it is you are promoting. I’m also an outsider; I was neither born a gypsy nor Spanish so my authenticity comes into question regularly. And flamenco an art form that has a rich culture and history so it is important to me to be respectful of that as I make it something of my own.
Naranjita Flamenco – what should we know? What do you guys do best? What sets you apart from the competition?
We are a dance studio that only focuses on teaching the art of flamenco. We primarily focus on the dance but we regularly have workshops for the cante (singing) and guitar playing too. We are special in that there are many master dance teachers at our studio, not just one, so students of all levels can find a way to push themselves at our studio. We also very much encourage students to perform, some teachers never invite their students to perform but we encourage every level of student to get out there. Flamenco is a unique art form in that it can be done very casually at parties and people of all ages and sizes can participate – it is very inclusive rather than exclusive – and we encourage everyone to try and participate.
What moment in your career do you look back most fondly on?
Watching students who started with us as 5 year olds do very difficult solos now as 10 year olds. We are very proud of our little ones – that they are doing so well but also that they love it like we love it.
Pricing:
- 1 Hour-long class for Adults is $20 – $60 for four classes
- 1 Hour-long class for Children is $15 – $52 for four classes
Contact Info:
- Address: 423 South Brookhurst St., Suite R, Anaheim
- Website: www.NaranjitaFlamenco.com
- Phone: 714-400-2939
- Email: [email protected]
- Instagram: https://www.instagram,com/naranjitaflamenco
- Facebook: https://www.facebook,com/naranjitaflamenco
- Twitter: https://www.twitter.com/thelittleorange
- Yelp: https://www.yelp.com/biz/naranjita-flamenco-anaheim
- Other: https://www.youtube.com/NaranjitaFlamenco
Image Credit:
Richard Tibbs
Alina Coman
Oscar Gonzalez
Getting in touch: VoyageLA is built on recommendations from the community; it’s how we uncover hidden gems, so if you know someone who deserves recognition please let us know here.
