~ ARTISTIC CONCEPT ~

Women have been fundamental throughout the history of flamenco, not only as performers but also as creators and exemplars of this art form.

 

From the “cafés cantantes” of the 19th century to the contemporary scene, bailaoras (dancers) and cantaoras (singers) have defined styles, languages, and aesthetics, and used flamenco to express the female experience with strength and authenticity.

 

Through body, voice, and gesture, women found in flamenco a way to occupy public spaces and convey thoughts and emotions that were otherwise often silenced.

 

However, their role in flamenco history has frequently been reduced to stereotypes or even erased entirely, despite the fact that women have made huge artistic contributions to flamenco and helped cultivate and maintain the art form by sharing it amongst each other - from artist to artist or teacher to disciple.

 

In recent history, many contemporary artists have looked back at the role of women from a more critical and feminist perspective, questioning gender stereotypes and reaffirming their role as central and influential figures within this cultural tradition.

Inspired by key figures such as Carmen Amaya, La Niña de los Peines, La Paquera de Jerez, Matilde Coral, and Manuela Carrasco, Bailaoras pays tribute to the women who have shaped this art form.

The show evokes the atmosphere of the 19th-century cafés cantantes, the original spaces where flamenco developed as an art form. Nowadays, we can experience this same atmosphere in Spain’s flamenco tablao venues, which have developed as a natural evolution of the cafés cantantes’ intimate environment.

Bailaoras does not mimic the past, but rather builds on it, adding contemporary influences that interact with traditions to create something evocative and new.