PARADISE THEATRE
F FOR FLAMENCA
at PARADISE THEATRE, 1006C BLOOR ST W, TORONTO
Saturday April 6, 2024 - 8:00pm
(Doors at 7:00pm, Show at 8:00pm)
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Licensed bar on site
Performance Time: 80 Minutes, plus a 15 minute intermission
FabCollab presents a rare all-woman flamenco gala, featuring the internationally renowned dancer Irene La Sentío (Seville), celebrated guitarist Antonia Jiménez,(Madrid), spectacular percussionist Nasrine Rahmani (Madrid), and singing sensation Laura Marchal (Barcelona), along with Toronto-based artists dancer Lia Grainger, singer Tamar Ilana, and dancer Virginia Castro (Cordoba). It promises to be a powerful performance of vibrant new collaborative creations that pay homage to the women who have inspired these incredible artists.
ABOUT THE SHOW
Artists
Irene La Sentío
Dancer, Seville
Flamenco is a necessity to Irene La Sentío; it is the only possible way of communicating in the most honest way. Irene discovered her passion at 13 and flamenco has not left her side since. She was acquainted to the “baile” (dance) thanks to Juan de los Reyes and Juana Amaya; she then continued her training with the famous Antonio Canales, la Familia Farruco and Fuensanta La Moneta.
Dancer Irene La Sentío honours La Chana
La Chana was born in Barcelona in 1946 and was raised in Hospitalet de Llobregat. The dancer, as all the gypsies, learned from her elders and began her artistic career when she was a teenager along with her uncle, the guitarist and singer El Chano, in an establishment called La Bota that was managed by her cousins. In 1965, the dancer El Sali, hired her for his group for six months in the party hall El Cortijo, in Lloret de Mar.
Antonia Jiménez
Guitarist, Madrid
Antonia Jiménez is considered by many to be the most important woman flamenco guitarist and composer of her generation. She was born in El Puerto de Santa María and studied guitar with Antonia Villar from a young age. Jiménez has accompanied many of Spain’s most renowned singers, including Carmen Linares and Juan Pinilla and dancers including Merche Esmeralda, Olga Pericet, Rocío Molina, Manuel Liñán and Belén Maya.
Guitarist Antonia Jiménez honours Adela Cuba
Adela Cubas was a guitarist who performed at the beginning of the 20th century, a true trailblazer for women flamenco guitarists in a world dominated by men. She had her own flamenco team, gave solo recitals, and toured many cities, collaborating with "El Mochuelo," "La Macarrona," and Pastora Pavón among many others.
Laura Marchal
Singer, Barcelona
Laura took her first steps as a professional flamenco singer in Seville, where she lived for eight years and trained under renowned teachers, including Manuel Vera “Quincalla” and Miguel Ortega. She earned a music degree from the Conservatorio Profesional Cristóbal de Morales, a music teaching degree from the Magisterio en la Universidad de Sevilla, and her higher education in music, at the ESMUC in Barcelona.
Singer Laura Marchal honours La Tía Marina Habichuela
María Carmona Fernández, a gypsy singer from Granada, was best known in the world of flamenco by the stage name Tía Marina Habichuela. She was born in Láchar, Granada in 1911 and died in Sacromonte, Granada in 1990. María was the aunt of guitarists Juan, Pepe, Luis, and Carlos Habichuela.
Nasrine Rahmani
Percussionist, Madrid
Born in Australia to a Mauritian mother and Iranian father, and after more than 20 years as a professional percussionist and 15 years residing in Madrid, Nasrine Rahmani has become the main reference for female Flamenco percussionists and is recognized for her delicate and tasteful accompaniment and surprising strength as a soloist.
Percussionist Nasrine Rahmani honours Sheila E
Guided by the forces of family, faith, and music, Sheila E. has made a name for herself as one of the most talented musical icons over the decades. With a fearless nature and a passion for sharing her gifts with others, Sheila truly follows the beat of her own drum. She touches the lives of so many, with her dynamic music career at the heart of everything. Sheila’s eagerness to share her music, openness as an author, and fire for her ministry make her such a relatable, inspirational figure for people of all ages.
Lia Grainger
Dancer, Toronto
Born in Vancouver, Lia Grainger began her flamenco dance training in 2002, studying with renowned local maestros Oscar Nieto and Kasandra “La China.” She cut her teeth performing at local flamenco tablao Kino Cafe and with Vancouver’s Mozaico Flamenco Dance Theatre, before relocating to Toronto and then Seville, Spain, to devote herself full-time to flamenco dance.
Dancer Lia Grainger honours her mother Linda Bailey
Linda Bailey is an award-winning author who has written nearly forty books for children, and is the winner of dozens of Canadian and international awards.
From Lia: "Nobody delights in the world like Linda Bailey."
From Linda: "I was born and grew up in Winnipeg. In my twenties, I travelled around the world, mostly by ship, working in England and Australia.
Tamar Ilana
Singer, Toronto
Tamar is a Toronto-born flamenco dancer and multilingual singer. She grew up on stage since the age of four with her ethnomusicologist mother Dr Judith Cohen, and has lived in Ibiza, Barcelona, Paris and Seville. At age 7, she began studying Flamenco dance with Toronto’s own Esmeralda Enrique with whom she later sang in her company and taught at her Academy.
Singer Tamar Ilana honours Rocío Márquez
Rocío Márquez is one of the fundamental figures in the flamenco music of the 21st century. She is a testament to the musical innovations of her generation. In her three decades as a singer, she has combined investigative rigour, creative vocation and interpretive excellence.
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Virgina Castro
Dancer, Córdoba/Toronto
Virginia started her Flamenco dance training at the age of five in Córdoba at Nieves Camacho dance school. She studied at a variety of Córdoba dance academies and in 2008 moved to Málaga where she studied during four years at the Angel Pericet Conservatorio Superior de Danza de Málaga and received a bachelor’s degree in Flamenco Dance Pedagogy.
Dancer Virginia Castro Duran honours Esmeralda Enrique
Esmeralda Enrique is one of the most celebrated Flamenco dance artists in Canada. Lauded internationally as a choreographer and teacher, she founded the Academy of Spanish Dance in 1981 and the Esmeralda Enrique Spanish Dance Company in 1982, renowned for its innovation, versatility and artistic excellence. Esmeralda grew up in the flamenco tradition, studying dance as a child and was working professionally by the age of 14.
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Rosary Spence honours Kokum Fabiola Spence
Fabiola Spence was born and raised on the shores of James Bay near Attawapiskat First Nation. She married Frederik Spence and raised her 7 children in Fort Albany First Nation. She loved to cook, sing church hymns, sew, bead, and harvest from the land. A kind and gentle woman, very humble, and showed kindness to everyone she encountered. She lived to 87 years and lived a rich life of Cree culture, language, and prayer.
