Flamenco Superstar Farruquito Makes His Segerstrom Center Debut

Renowned as "one of the greatest flamenco dancers of this new century" (The New York Times), Farruquito makes his Segerstrom Center debut on Thursday, September 29 in the Renée and Henry Segerstrom Concert Hall with his latest show, Improvisao, an intimate dance program that showcases his incomparable talent for daring improvisation. It is a celebration of flamenco performed in the most traditional manner where the dancer and the musicians return to flamenco's visceral origins.

Hailing from a flamenco family dynasty, the Spanish-born Farruquito is known for his passionate and precise dancing, and in Improvisao, he reveals, "It is a return to my roots and a sample of what I've learned in this profession. Singing, guitar and dance fused with total freedom to create a different show every day."

Tickets for Farruquito's Improvisao start at $39 and will go on sale Sunday, July 24 at 10 a.m. and will be available online at www.SCFTA.org, at the Box Office at 600 Town Center Drive in Costa Mesa or by calling (714) 556-2787. For inquiries about group ticket savings for 10 or more, call the Group Services office at (714) 556-0236.

Segerstrom Center for the Arts applauds Kia, Official Automotive Partner of the Center and United Airlines, Official Airline of the Center.

Juan Manuel Fernández Montoya, Farruquito, is the son of flamenco singer Juan Fernández Flores, El Moreno, and flamenco dancer Rosario Montoya Manzano, La Farruca. The heir of a unique school founded by his grandfather Farruco, he has lived his whole life immersed in the most pure flamenco art. He made his debut on the international scene at the age of five on Broadway in New York, with the show Pure Flamenco, sharing the stage with the most legendary figures of flamenco, among them, his family. At the age of eight, he presented his first seasonal show at the Sala Zambra in Madrid.

At the age of 11, he appeared in the music video Camaron Nuestro and in Carlo Saura's film Flamenco the following year, face to face with the saga's patriarch, El Farruco. That year he joined his family in the show Bodas de Gloria, participating in its artistic and choreographic conception. In 1992, he performed at the Opening Ceremony of the Barcelona Paralympics, and with his grandfather, El Farruco, at the Andalucía Pavilion of the Seville Universal Exposition, with the show Presente, Pasado y Futuro. The death of Farruco in 1997 signaled the changing of the guard: at the age of 15, Farruquito took on the responsibility of perpetuating the lineage. He created his first show, RAíCES FLAMENCAS, in which he distinguished himself as a dancer of a new dimension, who couples all his traditional knowledge with a prodigious personal artistic conception.

From its debut at the London's Royal Festival Hall, this display of the most pure and indigenous flamenco has been very successful at the Villa and Conde Duque Theaters in Madrid, at the Poliorama Theater in Barcelona and on international tours in France and Japan. In 2001, "Farruquito and his family" performed in the Flamenco USA Festival. After his performances in New York and Boston, The New York Times rated him as "the best artist who set foot in the Big Apple in 2001." The following year Farruquito triumphed in his home town, Seville, with a seasonal show in the Central Theater. He was very successful during the third edition of the Flamenco U.S.A. Festival, alongside his 14 year old brother, Farruco.

Leading the cast of the show POR DERECHO, he toured 11 North American cities, where the critics were stunned by his art and personality. Also, his participation at the Flamenco Festival of Madrid at the Albéniz Theater and at the Villamarta Theater in Jerez was a resounding critical and public success. Farruquito's genius did not go unnoticed by the great photographer Richard Avedon or by the American magazine People, which chose him as one of the most beautiful people in the world. The Academy of Music gave him a prize for his lyrics for Dulce Canela, which was included in María de Niña Pastori album, and for "the sound of his feet in the Jerez tribute album".

The dancer is also at the forefront of the academy, based in Seville, which propagates the precepts of the Farruco school. In November of 2003, the opening of his show ALMA VIEJA at the Maestranza Theater in Seville was a huge success. The success of this show was repeated at the Albéniz Theater in Madrid and the Victoria Theater in Barcelona. From then, the ALMA VIEJA tour has been seen on many Spanish stages, also triumphing in the U.K., France, and Italy

Program: Improvisao Director: Juan Manuel Fernández Montoya

Tickets - Start at $39; tickets go on sale July 24

In person - The Box Office 600 Town Center Drive Costa Mesa, CA 92626

Open 10 a.m. - 6 p.m. daily

Online - SCFTA.org

Phone - (714) 556-2787

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