¡Hola! I am Puela Lunaris, the founder of Dances of the World Society. I am delighted to share with you the history of my cultural heritage.

The first time that I heard a Zambra, I was in the cradle. I was born and raised in Montánchez, an ancient village in Southwestern Spain with an impressive Morisco castle, which used to be part of al-Andalus. 

I grew up listening the women in our village singing Zambras. I remember how much I loved this singing when I was a child. I would dance the Zambras daydreaming that someday I would become a professional dancer.

While the Zambras fell into oblivion as Flamenco turned into a footwork-based dance form, I became a professional dancer devoted to researching, reviving, and passing down the Zambra tradition.

I have been asked many times to share my 25 years of extensive research by teaching a course on the history of Zambra.

But I always hesitated because it is a painful history of prohibitions and persecutions that my ancestors endured and I wish I didn't have to remember it.

However, Zambra is also the history of the triumph of the human spirit and how dance & music can help us not only survive, but even thrive, through the worst of times!

So, the time has come for me to share the history of Zambra, my cultural heritage, and the extensive research I conducted while earning my BA in Dance Education and Spanish Language & Culture from the State University of New York. I also hold a Master in Digital Media from New York University, so rest assured that this will be an engaging multimedia experience including videos, fascinating interviews, music, art work, rare photographs, old film, and more! Join me in this unique multimedia experience and let's get in touch with powerful inspirations about renewal, resilience, and reinvention.