PRESS RELEASE: Paco Pena returns to Sadler's Wells

[Jan McNulty]

Paco Peña Flamenco Dance Company

Quimeras

Sadler’s Wells

Friday 23 November - Saturday 1 December 2012

Performances: Tues – Sat 7.30pm, Sat mat 2.30pm, Sun mat 4pm

Tickets: £12 - £38

Ticket office: 0844 412 4300 www.sadlerswells.com

“The dance – by turns flamenco and high energy African movement – is superb” Daily Telegraph

 

From 23 November – 1 December, legendary guitarist, composer, dramatist and producer, Paco Peña returns to Sadler’s Wells with his latest work, Quimeras, performed by the Paco Peña Flamenco Dance Company and directed by Southbank Centre Artistic Director Jude Kelly.

Exploring the lure of travel and the dream of a better life, Quimeras tells the story of a group of migrants from Africa who set out to reach Spain in search of work. For Quimeras, Peña draws on his own experience of living in Andalusia, a gateway to Europe for many North African immigrants.

 

Quimeras sees members of the Paco Peña Flamenco Dance Company joined on stage by a highly accomplished group of performers from Senegal and Guinea, showcasing a unique marriage of traditional Spanish and African music and dance cultures.

Over a career spanning more than four decades, Paco Peña has expanded the possibilities of flamenco and changed perceptions of the art form, bringing originality and energy to flamenco performance by mining the richness of its traditions while being, at the same time, inspired by contemporary culture.

 

Since 1970 the guitar maestro has taken the Paco Peña Flamenco Dance Company to international venues including The Royal Albert Hall, Sadler’s Well’s, New York’s Carnegie Hall, Sydney Opera House and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. Peña is regarded as one of the world’s leading flamenco performers, his skill, innovation and passion, acclaimed by audiences worldwide.

Quimeras sees Peña collaborate with Jude Kelly for the fourth time. Their previous collaborations include Voces y Ecos (2002), A Compás! To The Rhythm (2006 & 2007), Flamenco sin Fronteras (2009).

 

 

Notes to Editors

Paco Peña

Born in the Andalusian city of Córdoba, Paco Peña began learning guitar from his brother at the age of six and made his first professional appearance at the age of 12. In the late 1960s he left Spain for London, where his recitals of flamenco music captured the public imagination.

 

Venues for his solo performances have included the intimate Ronnie Scott’s Jazz Club and the monumental Royal Albert Hall in London, New York’s Carnegie Hall and the Concertgebouw in Amsterdam. He has shared the stage with fellow-guitarists, singers and instrumental groups, bridging diverse musical genres, including classical, jazz, blues, country and Latin American.

Since 1970 Paco Peña has performed regularly with his own hand-picked company of dancers, guitarists and singers in a succession of groundbreaking shows. The Paco Peña Flamenco Dance Company based is famed for its passionately authentic flamenco. The company’s most successful recent productions include Voces y Ecos, directed by Jude Kelly, and A Compás! To the Rhythm which was performed at the Peacock Theatre in 2006 and 2007. In 2010 Peña’s Flamenco sin Fronteras came to Sadler’s Wells to critical acclaim.

 

Quimeras premiered at Edinburgh Festival in 2010 and comes to Sadler’s Wells this November.

In 1997 Paco Peña was named Oficial de la Cruz de la Orden del Merito Civil in his native Spain; and in May of this very year, he was awarded The Gold Medal in the Arts by the John F. Kennedy Centre for the Performing Arts, in Washington - these honours were both bestowed by King Juan Carlos of Spain.

 

Jude Kelly – Director

Jude Kelly is the Artistic Director of Southbank Centre, Britain's largest cultural institution. She founded Solent People’s Theatre and Battersea Arts Centre, and was the Artistic Director of the York Festival and Mystery Plays. She later became the founding director of the West Yorkshire Playhouse where, as Artistic Director and then CEO, she established it as an acknowledged centre of excellence. In 1997, she was awarded an OBE for her services to the theatre. She has directed over 90 productions including the Royal Shakespeare Company, National Theatre, Chichester Festival Theatre, English National Opera, Châtalet in Paris and in the West End.

Quimeras is the fourth collaboration between Kelly and Peña, who have been working together since 2001.

 

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