Presented by the National Institute of Flamenco, the University of
New Mexico, PNC Bank and the National Hispanic Cultural Center,
Festival Flamenco Albuquerque—the oldest and largest flamenco
festival outside of Spain—will take place from June 21-29. The
Festival will include 20 performances, over 60 free and paid
workshops, 13 internationally based performance companies, one New
Mexican company, two world premiere shows and over 90 performers.
Now in its 37th year, Festival Flamenco Alburquerque (FFABQ) is
regarded as one of the most prestigious festivals of its kind,
having hosted many of the world's most prominent flamenco artists.
Ticket packages and workshops are available at www.ffabq.org.
Expect unforgettable performances from an incredible range of
artists, including traditional interpreters: dancer Karime Amaya,
grandniece of the legendary Carmen Amaya, with her world premiere
Contrapunto; internationally renowned dancer Farruquito, with the
U.S. premiere of Concierto Flamenco; singer “El Pele,” one of
flamenco’s greatest living singers, who opened for David Bowie’s
1990 concerts in Barcelona and Madrid; the brilliantly talented
Campallo family, with dancer Adela Campallo’s world premiere Fui
Piedra and brothers dancer Rafael Campallo and guitarist Juan
Campallo.
The Festival presents diverse interpretations of flamenco,
including groundbreaking avant-garde and upcoming artists.
Thrilling new performances from visionary artists such as Manuel
Liñán, winner of the 2017 Spanish National Dance Prize, Estévez
y Paños, winners of the 2019 Spanish National Dance Prize for
Creation, Mercedes de Córdoba, and María Moreno push the
boundaries of the art form. Rising stars such as Águeda Saavedra,
winner of the 2022 Festival de Jerez Revelation Prize for best new
artist, and Eduardo Guerrero, winner of the 2022 Lorca Prize for
Best Male Dancer, bring visceral, evocative energy to the stage.
Yinka Esi Graves performs in her critically acclaimed first solo
work, The Disappearing Act.
All of the scheduled concerts will make their United States
premiere during FFABQ37. Festival venues include the Journal
Theatre at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and UNM's Rodey
and Experimental Theatres, as well as late-night tablaos at Tablao
FlamencoAlbuquerque located inside of Hotel Albuquerque.
Children and youth can join us during the 25th Annual Flamenco
Kids Camp and the 5th Annual Festival Juvenil. Flamenco Kids Camp
is a fun, immersive day camp introducing children ages 6-12 to the
full range of flamenco arts and culture. Festival Juvenil is the
youth component of Festival Flamenco Alburquerque and the premier
national flamenco camp for experienced young flamenco dancers ages
10-15. Students take exclusive Festival Juvenil classes together as
part of a cohort taught by Festival Flamenco Alburquerque guest
artists.
Festival Flamenco Alburquerque truly has something for everyone,
including the Flamenco in Your Neighborhood Series, featuring free
classes and outdoor concerts produced in partnership with
Bernalillo County, the City of Albuquerque, the Village of Los
Lunas Parks and Recreation, and the Wildflower Playhouse (Taos).
The Exposición Flamenca Juvenil features a family-freindly
Saturday morning of free performances by Flamenco Kids Campers,
Festival Juvenil dancers, and local and national student
performance groups at Albuquerque’s Old Town Gazebo.
About the National Institute of
FlamencoThe National Institute of Flamenco (NIF)
is a 501c3 non-profit that has developed into an internationally
significant arts organization, unparalleled in its breadth and
depth of programming.
NIF was established in 1982 by Eva Encinias, a 2022 National
Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellow and lifelong
flamencoartist. NIF is home to the Conservatory of Flamenco Arts,
where flamenco study begins as early as age 3, and Yjastros: The
American Flamenco Repertory Company, the first US-based company to
be invited to perform in a Spanish flamenco festival. In 1999,
Yjastros: The American Flamenco Repertory Company, which is the
current dance company in residence at the University of New
Mexico's Department of Theatre and Dance, set forth on an artistic
journey that would become North America’s most distinctive flamenco
project.
This revolutionary performance entity combined the mosaic
quality of the American repertory company with the authentic idiom
of flamenco, creating a living archive of choreographic
masterworks. Yjastros is under the artistic direction of Joaquín
Encinias, who in 1999 opened the Conservatory of Flamenco Arts with
his mother Eva and sister, Marisol. Marisol Encinias is currently
the Executive Director of NIF and works alongside her mother,
Founding Director Eva Encinias, and brother Joaquín to ensure the
artistic relevancy, cultural excellence, and educational quality
that keeps NIF on the forefront of both arts education and the
dissemination of flamenco.
About The University of New Mexico The
Institute proudly partners with the University of New Mexico (UNM),
whose Department of Theatre and Dance is home to the only
accredited dance program in the United States in which flamenco is
a concentration (BA, BAIA, MA, MFA). The first edition of Festival
Flamenco Alburquerque celebrated the 50th Anniversary of UNM
College of Fine Arts, and the University has been a presenting
partner ever since. The Institute’s professional flamenco dance and
music company, Yjastros, is the flamenco dance company in residence
in the University of New Mexico’s Department of Theatre and
Dance.
About the National Hispanic Cultural Center The
National Hispanic Cultural Center is dedicated to the preservation,
promotion and advancement of Hispanic culture, arts and humanities.
The Center presents exhibitions, lectures, book readings,
performing arts and educational programming that are meaningful to
the local community. It offers the Hispanic, Chicano and Latinx
artist a place to present their work and bring it to the national
stage. The NHCC is committed to making a cultural home for the
diverse identities that shape the community.
About PNC Bank PNC Bank, National Association,
is a member of The PNC Financial Services Group, Inc. (NYSE: PNC).
PNC is one of the largest diversified financial services
institutions in the United States, organized around its customers
and communities for strong relationships and local delivery of
retail and business banking including a full range of lending
products; specialized services for corporations and government
entities, including corporate banking, real estate finance and
asset-based lending; wealth management and asset management. For
information about PNC, visit www.pnc.com.
Thaïs Ferrandis Coy
National Institute of Flamenco
(505) 242-7600
thais@nifnm.org