Dancer Sara Jerez with Jason Vera y Aragón, Miguelito and José Oretea at Café Citrón. March 30, 2009 photo by Jill Hatzai

It's almost 2:00pm on Friday as I type these words. My WiFi access here at Barnes & Noble expires in 20 minutes, so I'll make this quick.

My photographer friend Jill Hatzai sent me the photo you see above (click on it to see the full-size version). I've always pondered the many different ways of promoting the local flamenco scene but one thing that I do very well is make people aware of what's going on. It's really simple: I relentlessly publish pics of anything and everything going on (assuming I can make it to everything!).

But the next step after making the local community aware of what's going on, naturally, is enticing them to come out and enjoy the flamenco performances, IN PERSON. One fan of my website wrote me recently: "Even when I don't go out [to flamenco shows], when I look at your pictures, I feel like I have."

That's a compliment of course and I'll take it—I'm by no means a pro like Jill, but I am a decent photographer. But I'd rather have people come out to my shows rather than choose to stay home and catch up on what happened by checking my blog.

Oh well. It's a never-ending battle. But, not to worry, I won't ever give up. I'll do all I can to get people (especially new ones) to come out to support the flamenco scene.

Having said that, enjoy this pic by Jill. And make sure you view the full-size version. The panoramic view will make you feel like you're right there!

My thanks to Jill for the gorgeous pic. And I hope to see some new faces at my flamenco shows in the coming weeks! As for tonight (Friday), I'll be at Cabanas performing with dancer Ginette Perea and friends. Ciao!