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Outlook: The Guatemalan grandparents storming the disco

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Favio Vasquez and Maria Moreno

22/10/2020 GMT

The Guatemalan grandparents storming the disco

BBC World Service - Outlook, The Guatemalan grandparents storming the disco

Love, grief and fame: how disco has shaped the lives of Favio Vasquez and Maria Moreno

Favio and Maria met on the dance floor over 30 years ago and their disco moves have got them through all that's happened since, including terrible heartbreak and Covid isolation.

Guatemalan grandparents Favio "El Lobo" Vasquez and his wife Maria Moreno first met on the disco dance floor over 30 years ago. Despite being from rival dance groups they ended up falling in love and have been dancing together ever since. But earlier this year, after the death of their daughter, dance helped them in ways they could never have imagined. As they were raising their daughter's two young children and struggling to pay the bills, they decided to enter an online dance competition. They had to enter separately but Favio won and the video of him dancing went viral - it was even trending higher than Manchester United! They've been telling Outlook's Clayton Conn their story.

Ahmad Joudeh has risked everything for the love of dance - for him he says it's "dance or die". Growing up in a Palestinian family in Syria, he's braved war and death threats from the Islamic State group to pursue his dream of being a ballet dancer. In 2016 Ahmad was brought over from Syria to the Netherlands to join the Dutch National Ballet after the Artistic Director saw a film about Ahmad on TV, and he’s gone on to perform with some of the world’s most famous dancers since then. He’s also been reconciled with his father who for years disapproved of his son becoming a dancer.


Picture: Favio Vasquez and Maria Moreno
Credit: Favio Vasquez and Maria Moreno

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