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![]() La Tania spent her childhood traveling through the flamenco world of Spain; from the caves of Sacramonte, to the gypsy enclave of Morón de la Frontera, and on to Sevilla. She learned as she watched her mother and others perform the music and dance that became her life's passion. La Tania began her professional career at age seventeen dancing with various companies in Mallorca, Spain. From there she moved on to dance as a soloist in the major tablaos of Madrid, such as the prestigious Corral de la Moreria. As she continued her studies with various masters of Flamenco dance like Raúl Martinez, Merche Esmeralda, Cristobal Reyes, La Tati, and most notably Ciro, whom she considers her greatest influence; she began touring with some of Spain's most renowned Flamenco companies. Traveling with Paco Peña, Mario Maya, and others La Tania danced throughout Europe, North Africa, Japan, and Mexico. In 1991 La Tania started her own company in Madrid and in 1993 performed in America for the first time. With such a rich background of traditional flamenco and her own unique improvisational expression, interpretation, and variation La Tania's performances bring to American audiences a quality and depth that deliver a profound emotional impact. Having a splendid combination of charisma, elegance, and talent La Tania is recognized as one of the brightest young flamenco artists of today. In only her fifth season of touring in America she has already been awarded the Choreographers Fellowship from both the California Arts Council for 1995 and the National Endowment for the Arts for 1995 and 1996. Also in 1996 La Tania received the Isadora Duncan Dance Award for Artistic Excellence in the category of Individual Performance for her "Sonidos Negros" in 1994-95. The following year the Arts Achievement Award for Contemporary Dance from San Francisco Focus was presented to La Tania. In 1997 La Tania began work on "Abrazo", a suite of dances based on the Cantes de Ida y Vuelta (songs of leaving and returning). She obtained a Meet the Composer Grant along with a Creation and Presentation Grant from the NEA to help support the project. After six months of performance and development of her new work in Tokyo, Japan, La Tania returned to premiere "Abrazo" at the Irvine Barclay Theatre, a co-commissioner of the piece, in March 1998. Following the opening of her new work La Tania and company mounted a five-week national tour that culminated with a one-week residency at the Joyce Theatre in New York. Presently La Tania is touring her latest choreography "Passage of the Muse" an obra based on the cante hondo (deep song) of flamenco. Supported in part by awards from the James Irvine Fellowships in Dance, The John Simon Guggenheim Foundation and the National Endowment for the Arts in the Heritage and Peservation Category this piece is a collaboration with painter Judith Deim and composer Juan Antonio Suarez. Since it's critically acclaimed world premier in the fall of 1999 at the Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco, "Passage of the Muse" has been presented over two dozen times across America and Mexico. Keeping in close contact with the most
talented and relevant flamenco artists of today La Tania is able to bring
from Spain a strong assemblage of those who maintain the art and emotion
coursing through the heart of today's flamenco.
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