FUEGO FLAMENCO XI Innovative! Sultry! Mesmerizing!

 Culture   Wed, October 14, 2015 06:17 AM

Washington, D.C.  GALA’s continues its ¡Viva los 40! anniversary season with its eleventh international Fuego Flamenco Festival that brings leading flamenco artists from Spain and the United States to Washington audiences.  Praised for the presentation of stellar artists in an intimate tablao setting, the festival will run from November 6 through November 15 at the GALA Theatre, 3333 14th Street, NW, one block from the Columbia Heights metro station on the Green/Yellow lines. Discounted parking is available behind the theater at the Giant Food garage.

Fuego Flamenco XI, with Honorary Producers Lynne and Joseph Horning, is an exploration of traditional flamenco and its breadth and diversity through contemporary expressions. This year’s program includes Flamenco Men 2, a fiery display of the masculine elegance and muscular dynamics of flamenco featuring Edwin Aparicio of the Flamenco Aparicio Dance Company and special guest artists from Spain, and the Washington premiere of Flamenco Frecuencies choreographed and performed by the incomparable Karen Lugo with Ricardo Moro of the Fundación Conservatorio Flamenco Casa Patas of Madrid.  Ms. Lugo was presented to sold-out houses in the 2012 Fuego Flamenco Festival.

The festival program will also include Flamenco en Familia, free interactive demonstrations of various aspects of flamenco for children and families, led by members of the Spanish Dance Society in two sessions on November 14 from 11 am to 12:30 pm and 1:30 pm to 3 pm; and Student Matinees for the Flamenco Aparicio Dance Company.  The student matinees will be on November 5 and November 6 at 10:30 am.  For more information about the student matinees, call 202-234-7174.

Press Night and Artist Reception for Flamenco Aparicio Dance Company is Friday, November 6. Press Night and Artist Reception for Karen Lugo and Company is Friday, November 13.

The festival is made possible with generous support from Lynne and Joseph Horning, the Horning Family Fund of the Community Foundation for the National Capital Region, the Embassy of Spain in Washington, D.C., SPAIN arts & culture, and the D.C. Commission on the Arts and Humanities.

FLAMENCO APARICIO DANCE COMPANY

Fuego Flamenco XI opens with Flamenco Men 2, choreographed and directed by Edwin Aparicio, curator of the festival since its inception and founder of the Flamenco Aparicio Dance Company. Mr. Aparicio  continues his exploration of male dancing styles, from the untamed and raw to a more refined and elegant, and from the macho to the more androgynous. “From my flamenco teachers, I learned what is stereotypically masculine and feminine, but I also learned to combine the various elements to enrich the movement and to make it more expressive,” explains Aparicio.

Flamenco Men 2 features dancers Aparicio and renowned bailaores Domingo Ortega and Ivan Vargas from Spain.  Other artists appearing are dancers Norberto Chamizo from Granada, Spain and Carlos Menchaca from San Antonio, Texas; singers Curro Cueto from Spain and Hector Marquez from El Salvador; and guitarist Ricardo Marlow and percussionist Behzad Habibzai from Washington, D.C.  Each artist brings his unique talent to the richness of what it means to be a man in flamenco. Performances are on Friday, November 6 and Saturday, November7 at 8 pm and Sunday, November 8 at 2 pm. 

Edwin Aparicio is one of the most sought-after flamenco performers, instructors and choreographers in the United States and Latin America.  Described by critics as “the most amazing dancer seen in years,”  having “hellfire footwork” and choreographies with “beautiful, evocative imagery”, he trained with world renowned flamenco artists Tomás of Madrid and “La Tati”.

Mr. Aparicio also performed with The Washington National Opera at the Kennedy Center in El Gato Montés (1997) and in Don Giovanni (2003) under the direction of Plácido Domingo, and in Carmen (2015); and performed with the Washington Ballet in Hemmingway’s The Sun Also Rises (2013). He has appeared as a soloist throughout the United States with ensembles such as the José Greco Spanish Dance Company; and shared the stage with such internationally celebrated artists as Elena Andújar, Carmela Greco, Pastora Galván, La Tati, Ana Martínez, and José Luis Rodríguez.

Mr. Aparicio is the artistic director and choreographer of 11 acclaimed productions, including Íntimo with Carmela Greco, which was presented in Washington, DC, Philadelphia, Chicago, Pittsburgh, and Portland, OR; Entresueño, which marked his New York City debut as a company director; and Flamenco Flamenco, which was also presented at the Instituto Cervantes in Chicago. He is a co-founder and a featured performer of GALA’s annual Fuego Flamenco Festival, and is on the faculty of the Washington School of Ballet. Mr. Aparicio was named one of “25 Dancers to Watch” by Dance Magazine in 2009, and received a 2012 Protagonista Award from GALA for his artistic achievements and contributions to the Latino community.

Domingo Ortega (Featured Guest Dancer) is from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain, where he began his professional career.  He has performed with the companies of Carmen Cortés, Manuel Soler, and Cristina Hoyos, among others.  As a soloist, he has appeared with the Albarizuela Ballet and the companies of Antonio Vargas, El Güto, and Luis Dávila. Mr. Ortega also has toured with his own company throughout Spain and to Italy, Japan, Venezuela, Israel, Senegal, Brazil, and the United States.  He has appeared in several flamenco festivals and in many tablaos in Madrid, including Café de Chinitas, Zambra, Casa Patas, and El Cordobés. Among his honors are the Copa Teatro Pavón for young performers, and the Best Flamenco Dancer Prize at the national competition of Ubrique in 1989 and Cadiz in 1990. 

Iván Vargas (Featured Guest Dancer) was born in Sacromonte, Spain and is a member of the prominent family of flamenco artists, Los Mayas. He made his debut at the age of eight at the prestigious tablao Zambra in Madrid.  Since then he has performed in many other tablaos, including Casa Patas, Corral de la Pacheca, and Café de Chinitas. Mr. Vargas also appeared in the flamenco productions La Pasión, Contrastes, Cautivo, El nacimineto, El flamenco de un marginado, Coral del carbón, and Muerte en Granada. He appears in the video Furia Maya and the documentary Siete sentimientos flamencos.   Mr. Vargas was featured in Fuego Flamenco X.

 

CONTACT:
Dubraska Vale
202-234-7174
dubraska@galatheatre.org/
 
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