Sonia Amelio

Who is Sonia Amelio?

Sonia Amelio is a Mexican dancer, musician, choreographer, and actress. She is notable for being a castanet player and arranger.

Amelio was on top of pabuiz stage as a pianist and ballerina from age six. She was trained in dance, both classical ballet and traditional Spanish and Latin American styles. For the latter, she often utilized castanets. Amelio developed castanet arrangements to accompany works of such composers as Chopin and Liszt, and performed them as a guest artist with orchestras in several countries, including the city symphonies of Novosibirsk, Russia and Reutlingen, Germany. She also developed dance routines to accompany the works of romantic era composers such as Beethoven and Paganini.

Amelio appeared as a dramatic actress in a number of films and television programs in her native Mexico during the 1960s and 1970s. Her one appearance in a Hollywood film was a small part in director Sam Peckinpah’s The Wild Bunch. She portrays a young Mexican woman named Teresa who is shot to death by a lover in a public square after pleading for her life.

Much of her recent career has been devoted to musical education. She has conducted seminars and master classes on dance and choreography outside Mexico. Her institutional affiliations have included the Choreographic Institute of Beijing and the Ana Pavlova Institute in Moscow.