- From Havana, Cuba, Irene Rodriguez's raw talent for dance was discovered at a young age.

She quickly ascended to a professional Spanish and flamenco dancer and has received international acclaim.

Now she has more than 20 years' experience as a dancer, teacher and choreographer.

And resides right here in Tampa.

(lively flamenco music) - [Linda] Irene is energy and light and creativity.

- Flamenco is an energizing form of dance and Irene has a professionalism that is so precise and energetic and it's really based on her personality, which is so determined to be that way and she makes it come through in her performances.

(lively flamenco music) - I start dancing ballet because my mom, she took ballet lessons when she was young and I used to skip the classes because in the next studio, they were teaching flamenco style.

So I used to hear the music and the foot work and I used to escape to the other lessons.

So one day the flamenco teacher took me by my hand and asked for my mom, and my mom said, "Yes, she's my daughter.

Irene is my daughter, but maestra, there is a mistake.

Irene takes ballet lessons, not flameco lessons."

She said, "That is what you think.

Irene has been sneaking my classes for three months now so you owe me some money."

And it was the beginning of my relationship.

The same with ballet and flamenco.

So I started studying both careers at the same time and I'm very happy because ballet is aesthetic and prepares the body for all the styles you really wanna face dancing.

And flamenco is the passion.

Flamenco is the real expression of your soul through the movement, in my opinion.

(lively flamenco dancing) (lively flamenco music) In 2012, I opened the Compania Irene Rodriguez, Irene Rodriguez Company, and it became really successful in the country.

And I arrived to have 400 students for many years and an amazing studio of four floors in the Malecon of Havana until I decide to immigrate and you know, realize my career and develop my career here in the US.

- Tampa has a deep and rich history of connections to Cuba and to Spain.

So flamenco has actually been around the community but we've never had a performer of the stature of Irene, and that's what's exciting.

(dancers tapping) (dancers clapping) (Irene speaking in Spanish) - One more time.

One, two, three and four.

(lively music) (dancers tapping) - [Dancers] Ay, ay, ay, ay, ay.

- As a teacher, what's really amazing about her is that often people choreograph or they teach, they don't do both, but she does both extremely well.

And it doesn't matter what age or advanced level or not.

(lively flamenco music) (Irene speaking indistinctly) - I like it.

I like my teacher, I like the footwork.

What I like about the footwork is the sound.

(Irene speaking in Spanish) (dancers tapping) (lively flamenco music) - When you enter Irene's class, you enter in the knowledge that she is the profesora.

She's the professor.

You're going to respect her, you're going to give all your attention to her because the dance of flamenco demands it.

So she's very precise in her expectation of what we're going to give her in the class 'cause she gives everything to us.

(dancers tapping) - And.

(dancers tapping) - Ba, okay?

Don't think about this step.

Think about the power of the movement and the feeling you wanna spread with that.

One more time the same phrase and continue to the end.

- She's tough.

We have a joke.

I don't know if she's aware of it or not.

We call it Irene one more time 'cause it's never one more time.

It's always more than one time, but she's very exacting.

(dancers tapping) (dancers clapping) - Chorus, what is the name of this?

- She spends a lot of time on the clapping because you have to get the beat of the music correct, otherwise you can't do the footwork.

(lively flamenco music) - I love the musicality.

I love being a musician.

At the same time, I am a dancer because when you do foot work, you are creating percussion with your legs.

And in fact, not only with your legs, we call it footwork but in fact, it's a complete percussion because we do palm, we do percussion in our body.

It's like you with your body are playing this music.

So I always try to convey that because for me, it's really important, the communal relationship between the music and the dance.

And never be over-- - Dance is just so lovely because it is that human interaction.

And I think she shares a lot of her history and stories very generously with people and the transitions that she's been forced to make for herself.

And she brings that into the room.

And I think it's very inspiring to the people that she works with.

(lively flamenco music) - [Narrator] To learn more, visit irenerodriguezcompania.com.