Flamenco Denver is excited to offer a night of passion, music and joy with its performance of RAICES, the roots of Flamenco. This event will take place September 30, 7:30 pm at the Robert & Judi Newman Center for the Performing Arts in Denver. Tickets are available now and can be purchased through flamencodenver.org or the Newman Center box office, 2344 East Iliff Avenue Denver. Because of high demand, early ticket purchase is highly recommended.

Maria Vázquez, the Executive Director of Flamenco Denver, promises an energetic experience with a combination of internationally known dancers and musicians brought to Denver especially for this performance alongside members of the Flamenco Denver Dance Company. Together they will deliver an evening full of passion, energy, beauty and culture, and the interaction among the musicians, dancers and audience will complete the enjoyment of this captivating event. She states that “with this unique group of professional and renowned flamenco artists, we are able to develop and experiment with increasingly complex and melodious movement and music to bring a new and exciting cultural event.”

Raices is a Spanish word for “roots” or “beginnings”, and the performance will demonstrate how dance, music and song join to create the narrative and expression of this art form. Vázquez has built on this platform to bring the culture of Flamenco to Denver and other areas of Colorado, as well as increasing awareness of its cultural impact with offerings of Flamenco classes, performances and outreach programs to many underserved elementary schools in the Denver Metro area.

Flamenco has been an integral part of Vázquez’ life from a very young age. She studied and toured with some of the most well-known modern Spanish dance artists and received her degree in Spanish Dance from the Conservatory of Dance in Seville, Spain. She danced with the company Ciudad de Sevilla, touring Europe for two years. After moving to Denver in 2002 she established Flamenco Denver, which since 2014 has operated as a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Support has come from numerous funders including the Scientific and Cultural Facilities District, Community Acts Fund, Colorado Creative Industries, Bonfils-Stanton Foundation, Alpine Bank and many generous individuals.

Vázquez continues to perform with contemporary Flamenco artists such as Isaac Tovar, Nino de los Reyes, Manuel Gutierrez, Antonio Granjero, and Estafania Ramirez. In 2020, the Dance Archive at the University of Denver honored Vázquez as a recipient of the prestigious Legends of Dance award.

The following artists will join Vázquez and members of the Flamenco Denver Dance Company onstage this year:

Dancer ​Manuel Gutierrez Cabello​ was born in Montpellier, France after his parents had migrated to the south of France from Cordoba, Spain. From a young age he had shown a talent for dance, winning his first flamenco award at only 8 years old. He began to develop his unique style under the direction of Lita Peiro, José Galván and later with Joaquin Grilo and Javier Latorre. By the age of twenty, Gutierrez began producing works and dancing across Europe with many legendary artists. The Telegraph in London called his work “Fiery.” Danse Magazine nicknamed him, “The Young Flamenco Prince.” Figarro Newspaper raved “The dance is strong, voluptuous, and spectacular… a profound type of Flamenco and incredibly explosive.” 

Manuel was invited to teach at the top studios in Europe including L’Opéra de Paris. During this period, he worked on television and stage productions as choreographer/dancer, such as “Romancero Gitano,” “El Emigrante” and many others. Since 2011, Manuel has contributed his time as Artistic Director for Global Gift Foundation for the charitable initiative “The Global Gift Gala” which works alongside actress, producer and philanthropist Eva Longoria as Honorary Chair in benefit of Eva Longoria Foundation.

Manuel concurrently has continued to dance and choreograph around the world. In 2012, he helped create the production “Juncal Street” with Fanny Ara and his choreography was nominated for an Isadora Duncan Dance Award. Currently residing in Los Angeles, Manuel is establishing himself as a very prolific performer and choreographer throughout the U.S.

AMPARO HEREDIA “La Repompilla”, flamenco singer from gypsy origins. Born in Málaga in 1970, Heredia began to sing at the age of 16 in Miami under the guidance of Juan de Alba at a local tablao (an intimate space where flamenco is performed). Despite her young age, she toured many of the flamenco tablaos in the most important cities in the U.S., including in Chicago, New York, and Washington D.C. Later she joined the Carlota Santana Company, where she worked for several years at the Symphony Space Theater in New York. At the tablao El Flamenco in México City, Heredia spent a long season in which she sang with all the great artists who passed through. Later, she returned to Spain, where she worked in some of the most important flamenco tablaos in Madrid; Casa Patas, El Corral de la Pacheca, among others. While there, Heredia achieved great recognition in the flamenco community and became an in-demand singer for dancers. She has worked with La Lupi, the acclaimed dancer from Málaga, as well as the bailaor Juan Andrés Maya, with whom she has traveled throughout Spain with the flamenco shows “Furia Maya,” “La Pasión, and others. On the 50th anniversary of Christian Dior, Heredia performed in the gardens of Versailles with Manuel Lombo.

Singer​ José Cortés Fernández​ was born in the south of France in 1974 from an important gypsy family from Almería. At the age of ten, Jose began his career in Jerez de la Frontera where he won the premio del joven aficionado del cante flamenco. Since then, he has shared the stage with the best artists, including Belen Lopez, Alfonso Losa, Sergio Arranda, Manuel de la Malena, Juan Ogalla, Javier Serrano, Joselito Vega, María del Mar Moreno, Antonio de la Malena, Mara Martinez, Andrés Peña, Pilar Ortega, Antonio el Titi, Juan Carmona, Isabel Gazquez and Manuel Gutierrez. He has sung for the workshops of Carmen Ledesma, Israel Galván, Angelita Gómez and Javier Latorre. In 2010, he moved to the United States and now works with many amazing artists such as Jason McGuire, Ricardo Diaz (and on his record Traversura), Yaelisa Camino Flamencos, Carola Zertuche Teatro Flamenco, Fanny Ara, Melissa Cruz, Cristina Hall, Jesus Muñoz, Jesus Montoya, Antonio de Jerez and Pedro Cortés. An incredible and traditional artist, José Cortés Fernández surprises us now by taking a step forward in his conception of flamenco by making pure flamenco lives alongside other genres. 

Andres Vadin was born in Havana, Cuba in 1976. Currently he is a guitarist, composer, arranger, session, tour musician and guitar teacher. He is a graduate from the Guillermo Tomas and Amadeo Roldan Conservatory of Music in Havana. He began studying music at the age of 10 and won the first prize in the Amadeo Roldan guitar competition at the age of 12 held in Havana, Cuba, At an early age Andres showed great passion for different music styles, resulting in being a versatile musician.

His talent allows him to play the most traditional flamenco music, and as well played with artists of different music styles such as Aceituna sin Hueso, (with whom he collaborated on the album “Cuba le canta a Serrat”, nominated for the Latin Grammy in 2005 in the category “Contemporary Tropical Album”) and Oskar Cartaya (Vadin collaborated on his album “Bajo Mundo”, nominated for a Latin Grammy in 2017 in the category “Best Latin Jazz Album”), and many others.

He has toured throughout Great Britain, Europe, South and Central America and the Middle East.  He has played at many well-known music festivals like WOMAD from Peter Gabriel, Glastonbury, Musicport World Music Festival, and the Montreal International Jazz Music Festival. He performed at the inaugural Big Mama Jama Jamathon, a 52-hour non-stop music event organized in LA by the legendary Steve Vai, worked as a session musician for the movie soundtracks of “The Whale of a Tale” and “Bel Canto”, and collaborated on albums of various artists. One of his great passions is teaching. He collaborated with Barrio Music, the organization that provides music education to neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles, CA.

Grammy award winner Diego “El Negro”Alvarez is a master cajón player born in Venezuela. He lived in Spain for 16 years, where he developed his career alongside several prestigious flamenco dance companies such as Joaquin Cortez, Antonio Canales, Sara Baras, Nuevo Ballet Español and Paco Peña. He is the winner of a Latin Grammy in 2010 (best Rock album of the year for “Sera” by La Vida Boheme) and has more than 12 other Latin Grammy nominations to his credit. He promotes the cajón as a universal instrument, demonstrating its foundations in flamenco and the music of Peru. He now makes his home in Los Angeles, where he continues working with different musical projects, primarily in flamenco and jazz.

About Flamenco Denver

Flamenco Denver is a Denver-based nonprofit organization focused on transmitting knowledge of and igniting passion for the Flamenco art form. By tapping into our Hispanic roots to inspire all generations of Flamenco artists through classes, quality performances and school outreach programs, we foster a strong connection with a growing and diverse audience. From small restaurant “tablao” settings to full production theaters, María Vázquez and her group of dancers and musicians perform regularly in Denver and the surrounding area. She offers beginner, intermediate and advanced flamenco classes for men, women, and children at her studio in Denver’s South Broadway District. For more information, please visit www.flamencodenver.org or call (303) 968-5586.