Ballet Hispanico Continues its Flamenco Tablao Series

Ballet Hispánico, the nation's premier Latino dance organization, continues its Flamenco Tablao series, featuring the magnificent Nélida Tirado, in its Penthouse Studio on Saturday, June 23, 2018 at 8:00pm & 9:30pm.

Enjoy an intimate performance, with complimentary wine and small bites, and experience the ambiance of NYC's flamenco nightclub scene. Tickets start at $25 and are available at https://www.ballethispanico.org/flamencotablao.

Flamenco tablaos, also known as cafés cantantes, became popular during the mid-nineteenth century. These tablaos gave visibility to a dance form that otherwise would have gone unnoticed, unless one was part of a family or attended a family gathering where flamenco culture was their way of life. Ballet Hispánico's tablao offers a warm, intimate setting where you can experience the form's heartfelt songs, dance, and passion.

In a tablao, seasoned dancers and musicians, who are well versed in the intricacies of the flamenco palos (suite of styles) and the eclectic musical heritage, come together to improvise, compose, arrange, and work collaboratively in the moment. The flamenco dancers may choreograph moments in a segment, but the majority of the performance is spontaneous, requiring all of the artists to function as a band and to be fully present.

Nélida Tirado, hailed as "magnificent and utterly compelling" (The New York Times), is a Bronx-raised New York native born into a family of artists. Upon the urging of her mother to remain connected to her Puerto Rican roots via Bomba and Plena, she stumbled upon flamenco where she embraced the art form and identified with its rhythmic and fiery qualities. Nelida began her formal training at the Ballet Hispánico School of Dance at the age of six. Barely out of her teens, she was invited to tour the U.S. with Jose Molina Bailes Espanoles and work as a soloist in Carlota Santana's Flamenco Vivo. Upon receiving a scholarship to the Fundacion Crisitina Hereen, she was also notified of her acceptance via video audition from NYC to Compania Maria Pages. She was the only foreigner and soloist/dance captain of Compania Maria Pages and Compania Antonio El Pipa, performing at prestigious flamenco festivals and on television in Spain and throughout France, Italy, UK, Germany and Japan such as the Bienal del Arte Flamenco, Festival de Jerez, Festival de Otono, and the Festival de la Guitarra. She later represented Compania Maria Pages as a solo artist at the Aichi Expo in Japan.

Since her return to the U.S., she has performed in Franco Zeferelli's "Carmen" with the Metropolitan Opera of NY, World Music Institute's "Gypsy Caravan 1", "Noche Flamenca" and was the featured flamenco star in "Riverdance". She presented her first solo concert "Flamenco Pa'Dos" at Symphony Space with guest artist David Paniagua and Joyce Soho with guest artist "Keko de Cordoba". Tirado was recipient of the 2007 and 2010 BRIO Award for Artistic Excellence, and opened with her company for the Buena Vista Social Club featuring Omara Portoundo for the Celebrate Brooklyn! Festival in 2010. Additional performance highlights include HarlemStage E-Moves, Queens Theater in the Park, "Amores Quebrados" & "Xavier Montsalvatge" at the Repertorio Espanol, Valerie Gladstone's "Dance Under the Influence" 2011 & 2012 in collaboration with the Flamenco Festival USA, and a collaboration with Wynton Marsalis at Harvard University. In 2016 she premiered of her solo show "Dime Quien Soy" to a sold-out audience at Joe's Pub for the Flamenco Festival NY. She is currently the recipient of the 2017 Rosario Dawson Muse Fellow through BAAD and was featured in Dance Magazine's "25 to Watch."

In the fall of 1970, Tina Ramirez looked at her neighborhood on the Upper West Side of Manhattan and envisioned a world where the young Latino children playing on the street could find a way to a world of art and professional opportunities. Her vision grew into a small grassroots dance and education organization that gave a voice to those young students at a time when Latinos were either absent or stereotyped in American culture. Today, Ballet Hispánico is a catalyst for change and diversity with tremendous impact, nurturing artists, students and future leaders. An acclaimed choreographer and former member of the Company, Artistic Director & CEO Eduardo Vilaro has brought a dynamic vision of social equity, cultural identity, and quality arts education. Under his leadership, Ballet Hispánico's Company has received national and international praise, performing to ovations around the world. The School of Dance, located in the same building where Ms. Ramirez began her mission, is thriving and widely respected. Ballet Hispánico's community arts partnerships have transformed the lives of thousands of young people in New York, Los Angeles, Houston, Miami, New Orleans, and Chicago. By bringing individuals and communities together to celebrate and explore Latino cultures through dance, Ballet Hispánico is now a beacon of hope, tolerance, and artistic excellence.

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