International Flamenco Festival

It is the only annual showcase named after our city, featuring the best and brightest international and U.S. flamenco talent.

MARCH 24, 8 PM
Championed by maestro Paco de Lucía as the next great flamenco star, Spanish guitarist Vicente Amigo has more than lived up to his promise. Following in de Lucía’s footsteps, he’s forged musical ties with artists around the world, from Sting to Brazilian masters Milton Nascimento and Eliane Elias to jazz guitar innovators including John McLaughlin and Al Di Meola. His fourth album, City of Ideas, won a Latin Grammy as Best Flamenco Album, while fans of Spanish-language pop could hum the guitar solo on crooner Alejandro Sanz’s hit Corazon Partío. Amigo’s performances feature pyrotechnic virtuosity, charisma and an intangible quality called duende, which Amigo explains simply, “If you hurt when you hear it, then it’s duende.”

MARCH 25, 7 PM
Theatre Flamenco was the first American dance company to stage full productions of Spanish dance in the U.S., and is one of the oldest dance companies in California.

Adam del Monte is a leading guitarist of his generation, a dynamic force in both classical and flamenco disciplines, whose eclectic awareness of jazz, world music and other contemporary forms led to new, creative renditions of flamenco repertoire.

Nino de Los Reyes has danced in Spain’s most renowned tablaos including Casa Patas, Cafe de Chinitas, and Las Carboneras. His solo presentation entitled Origen was recently awarded First Prize at the 2011 Madrid Choreographic Competition as well as the Suma Flamenca Award.