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Bio

More About the Artists

MANUELA CARRASCO

The absolute queen of Gypsy flamenco dance, Manuela Carrasco is known for her great strength, temperament and mesmerizing stage presence. She brings unprecedented energy and imagination to her performances. The virtuosity and depth of her artistry have been recognized at the highest level of Spanish soceity. In 2007 she was honored by Spain's Ministry of Culture with the Premio Nacional de Danza and in 2008 she received the Medal of Andalucia.

She was born in Triana, a neighborhood in Seville once known for it's Gypsy blacksmith shops, where important chapters of flamenco's history were forged. As a young child she displayed a natural instinct for flamenco dance and learned by watching her father José Carrasco, El Sordo, who was an excellent dancer. 

Her career began as a pre-teen in the “tablao” El Jaleo, in Torremolinos and by the age of thirteen Manuela Carrasco undertook a two-year tour of Europe (against the wishes of her parents) with the flamenco company of Curro Velez. From then on her career snowballed. She was featured in many of the premier flamenco establishments of Spain including, Los Gallos in Seville, and Los Canasteros in Madrid.

When she was only 18 years old she was named "Goddess of Flamenco Dance" by the Spanish Gypsy congressman and social activist, Juan de Dios Ramírez Heredia.

In 1974 she won the prestigious Pastora Imperio National Dance Award in Cordoba and this was the start of many trophies and honors that she would receive during her career, including the International Award for Dance in San Remo, Italy in 1976. 

In 1976 she was featured in a show called "Gitano", in which she appeared along side Cameron de la Isla (her compadre), Pansequito, and El Lebrijano.

Manuela Carrasco was one of the principle figures on the festival circuit in the 1970’s and 80’s, appearing at the Potaje Gitano and the Festival de la Puebla de Cazalla. In fact most of the festival stages in Andalucía have been blessed with her impeccable and profoundly Gypsy style of dance.

In 1986 she toured the US with the legendary show "Flamenco Puro", accompanied by La Fernanda de Utrera, El Farruco and El Chocolate, some of the most influential names in flamenco at the time. And she astonished audiences in the Maestranza bull ring during the 1992 Bienal de Flamenco in Seville, with a show called “….Y Sevilla,” directed by José Luis Ortiz Nuevo.

In 1995 Manuela performed in the Carlos Saura film "Flamenco" along with guitarist Moraito Chico and singer José Mercé. She also appears in Saura's film "Sevillanas".

She founded her own dance company in the late nineties and has since presented several critically acclaimed shows, including "Asi Baila Sevilla" and "Jondo Adonai" and during the 2002 Bienal de Flamenco (Bi-annual flamenco festival) in Seville she triumphed with the show "Escencias" accompanied by singer El Chocolate. Her show "Un Sorbito de lo Sublime" featured guest artist Manuel Molina and received the award for best flamenco production of 2007.

One of her most recent offerings is a show called "Romali" which traces the links between Indian music and dance and Andalucian Gypsy flamenco. She is accompanied by a Hindu Kathak dance, performing  traditional dances of  Rajastan, Northern India, and Andalucía.

She is currently touring with "Suspiro Flamenco," an exploration of the "duende" in flamenco. She is joined for this performance by El Torombo and Rafael de Carmen, and a cast of 7 musicians, including singers Enrique el Extremeño and Samara Carrasco and guitarist Joaquin Amador.


EL TOROMBO

Francisco José Suarez grew up in the flamenco community of Sevilla and started to dance at the age of seven.  As a young dancer he performed side by side with Juana Amaya, Belén Maya and with the director Mario Maya in Europe, Asia and America.

Today, he is an important  representative of traditional flamenco. His honest, authentic and elementary dance style inspires audiences all over the world.

“El Torombo” – a purist of Gypsy-style dance, unites tradition and his own unique understanding of flamenco. Known for his philosophic approach, he views flamenco as a zen-like practice.

A sought-after performer, he collaborates frequently with other artists such as Farruquito, Manuela Carrasco, La Susi, Tomatito and Potito.

He lives in Sevilla with his wife and two daughters and teaches flamenco dance classes when not touring.


MANUEL AGUJETAS

Manuel de los Santos Pastor, also known as El Agujetas or el El Agujeta, (b. Rota, Spain, 1939). Flamenco singer. Son of singer Agujetas el Viejo. Both father and son follow the school of Manuel Torre, representative of the tradition of Jerez, and father of singers Dolores Agujetas and Antonio Agujetas. He worked in his father's blacksmith forge until he went to work in Madrid as a teenager to sing in the flamenco nightclubs there. He took part in the recording of the Magna Antología del Cante, compiled by Blas Vega. He appeared singing a martinete in Carlos Saura's film Flamenco (1995) and in Dominique Abel's documentary Agujetas.Cantaor.