Flamenco Artist Nelida Tirado Heats Up Joyce SoHo July 17-20

July 5, 2008 - PRLog -- New York, NY—Flamenco artist Nelida Tirado brings Flamenco’s past and its evolution to the Joyce SoHo stage July 17-20.  The four performances start at 8 p.m. each day and run 1.5 hours in length. Tickets are $25 for adults, $22 for students and can be purchased via http://www.ovationtix.com or by calling 1-212-352-3101 or 1-866-811-4111. The Joyce SoHo is located at 155 Mercer Street (Houston/Prince) in New York City. B/D/F/V to Broadway-Lafayette, R to Prince, 6 to Bleecker.

Tirado, hailed as “magnificent” by the NY Times, is known for her intense grace and commanding style. She is one of few American-born dancers to make her mark in Spain as well as the United States. Through her powerful work with Flamenco heavyweights such as Maria Pages, Juan Andres Maya, Antonia El Pipa, and many others she has gained a worldwide reputation as a force to be reckoned with in Flamenco.  For this series of performances, Tirado will be joined on stage by a guest dancer from Spain and four accomplished and diverse Flamenco musicians.

Conceptually, Tirado preserves Flamenco tradition but interlaces it with modern elements resulting in a passionate, suspenseful, strong, emotional, and no-nonsense performance.  The show will include the premiere of Tirado’s solo, Delirio, a dance and multimedia collage that was commissioned by HarlemStage’s Fund for New Work.  She explains: “It is a piece based on the simple yet powerful healing human emotion, love.  It is not a traditional Flamenco piece and isn’t intended to be, but it is still “Flamenco.”  The accompanying video montage was completed by artist Yu-Chien Chang.

Also included in the program is “37 Años”, which premiered at HarlemStage earlier this year.  Through the traditional Flamenco dance, Siguiriya, Tirado expresses her personal journey and search for a world free of any bias that is inhibiting: a world free of religious, gender and social bias.

The Bronx-raised New York native was born into a family of musicians, though no one had been able to earn a living as an artist. Upon the urging of her mother to discover her Puerto Rican roots via dances such as the Bomba and the Plena, Tirado stumbled upon Flamenco, where she embraced the art form’s rhythmic and fiery qualities. Flamenco also gave her the freedom to express the anguish and loss of both of her parents at very young ages.

Tirado began her formal training at age six at Ballet Hispanico of NY where she trained in classical ballet, graham technique and classical Spanish dance/Flamenco. Her dance training led her to become a scholarship recipient, member of the apprentice company, and receive yet another scholarship- The Tito Puente Scholarship.  
Barely out of her teens, she was immediately noticed and was invited to join Jose Molina Bailes Espanoles and toured the US for the next several years. She joined Carlota Santana's "Flamenco Vivo" company and was soloist and dance captain for several years.

She was original member of the Metropolitan Opera’s Spanish Ballet and performed in Franco Zeferelli’s “Carmen at the Met and toured Japan. In 1997, she received an Artist in Residence grant from the New York Foundation of the Arts.  Her desire to continue learning led her to Spain in 1997 where she immediately began studying and performing professionally with Juan Andres Maya in Granada. She was offered a scholarship with the "Fundacion Cristina Hereen" in Seville but instead joined Compania Maria Pages where she was soloist and dance captain performing at prestigious Flamenco festivals within Spain including the Bienal del Arte Flamenco, Festival de Jerez, Festival de Otono, and the Festival de la Guitarra in Cordoba.  She has performed nationally and internationally throughout the world and in 2000, she was part of World Music Institute's "Gypsy Caravan 1" with Compania Antonio El Pipa. Her competence, impeccable technique and comprehension of Flamenco gave her the opportunity to work with many of Spain's major Flamenco artists such as Fernando Romero, Manolo Marin, Manuel Soler, Antonio Reyes, Juan Ogalla, Isabel Bayon, Pastora Galvan, Marina Heredia and many more.

Upon her return to the US, she worked with "Noche Flamenca” and was featured Flamenco star in the highly acclaimed show "Riverdance" on Broadway.  She recently participated in The E-MOVES choreography showcase at Harlem Stage 2007, 2008  and presented her first solo concert June 2007  “Flamenco Pa’ Dos”  with guest artist David Paniagua at The Peter Jay Sharpe Theater at Symphony Space.

Tirado currently resides in New York City and was just awarded a grant from HarlemStage’s Fund for New Work. She also received the 2007 BRIO award for artistic excellence from the Bronx Council of the Arts and was featured as Dance Magazines "25 to Watch" in 2007.

Additional musicians featured in the performance from both Spain and the US are: “El Keko”, Flamenco dance; Roberto Castellón and Cristian Puig, Flamenco guitar; Gonzalo Grau, percussion and Gabriel Giorgio Gonzalez, Cante Flamenco (song).  Complete bios for the artists and additional information can be found at: http://wwww.lamarcaflamenco.com.  For press ticket requests contact Cathy Eilers, Joyce SoHo Program Manager  (212) 334-9907 or ceilers@joyce.org

The creation of Joyce SoHo was made possible by the magnanimous support of the LuEsther T. Mertz Charitable Trust.  Altria Group, Inc. is the 2007-2008 Season Sponsor of The Joyce Theater.  Joyce SoHo is supported by private funds from Carnegie Corporation of New York, Doris Duke Charitable Foundation, First Republic Bank, The Harkness Foundation for Dance, JPMorgan Chase Foundation, The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, Rockefeller Brothers Fund, The Fan Fox and Leslie R. Samuels Foundation, The Peter Jay Sharp Foundation, The Shubert Foundation, and The Starr Foundation; and by public funds from the New York City Council; the New York City Department of Cultural Affairs; the New York State Council on the Arts, a state agency; and the National Endowment for the Arts, which believes that a great nation deserves great art.  Special support for Joyce SoHo has been provided by the Lila Acheson Wallace Theater Fund established in The New York Community Trust by the founders of the Reader's Digest Association, The Greenwall Foundation, Goldman, Sachs & Co., and Foundation for Contemporary Arts.