Festival Flamenco Alburquerque: June 9-17, 2023

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Festival Flamenco Alburquerque, a partner of Visit Albuquerque, will feature music, dance, and culture with top flamenco artists from Spain and the Americas. 

This year’s Festival showcases so many premier dancers and musicians – including Spanish National Dance Prize and New York Bessie Performance Award winners – that it was necessary to add an extra day. Encompassing four major venues, the University of New Mexico’s Rodey and X Theatres, the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and Tablao Flamenco Albuquerque in the city’s historic Old Town, this unparalleled nine-day event will mesmerize audiences with flamenco ranging from the traditional to avant garde. 

This year, expect boundary-breaking, genre-defying performances from iconic artists Israel Galván, Olga Pericet, Andrés Marín, Marco Flores, and Daniel Doña. Rising star Patricia Guerrero makes her Festival debut, and Nazaret Reyes, Iván Vargas, Raquel Heredia “La Repompa,” and Sergio Aranda present electrifying flamenco in its most traditional form. 

In addition to these exhilarating performances, the Festival presents a series of innovative, contemporary performances in the X Theatre, including U.S. and world premieres by Tacha González, Florencia Oz, Elohim Flamenco, and New Mexico’s Yjastros: The American Flamenco Repertory Company. Yjastros will perform the U.S. premiere of Xicano Power, which debuted at the 27th Festival de Jerez where Yjastros made history as the first U.S.-based flamenco company to be invited to perform in the prestigious event.

The Festival, which flamenco scholar José María Velasquez-Gaztelu has called “...a revolution,” and flamencologist Estela Zatania called “...the miracle of Albuquerque,” is presented by the National Institute of Flamenco, in partnership with the University of New Mexico and the National Hispanic Cultural Center.

Festival Flamenco Alburquerque is the oldest, largest and most respected flamenco festival outside of Spain. Taking place from June 9-17, the Festival will include over 60 workshops, 12 internationally-based performance companies, one New Mexican company, and 114 total performers. Tickets start at $45 and can be purchased at http://www.ffiabq.org or through venue box offices.

This unforgettable event will feature some of flamenco’s most awarded artists: Israel Galván, who was honored with the 2012 New York Bessie Performance Award for an Outstanding Production, the Spanish National Dance Prize, and the Fine Arts Medal awarded by the Council of Ministers of the Spanish Government; Olga Pericet, winner of the 2018 Spanish National Dance Prize; and Andrés Marín, winner of the 2022 Spanish National Dance Prize and referred to as “the Picasso of Flamenco.”

On June 15, a late-night music experience will leave you breathless with an intimate concert at Tablao Flamenco Albuquerque, located at Hotel Albuquerque, by award-winning artists José Valencia y Salvador Gutiérrez for a Recital de Cante y Guitarra (flamenco song and guitar).

For the most intrepid festival-goers, customized ticket packages are available to maximize the Festival Flamenco Alburquerque experience at a discounted rate of 20-30% off ticket face values. For journalists, the Festival will include daily press conferences facilitated by National Institute of Flamenco Executive Director Marisol Encinias who will hold discussions with guest artists.

Children and youth can join during the 24th Annual Flamenco Kids Camp and the 4th Annual Festival Juvenil. Flamenco Kids Camp is a fun, immersive day camp introducing children ages 6-12 to the full range of flamenco arts and culture. Festival Juvenil is the youth component of Festival Flamenco Alburquerque and the premier national flamenco camp for experienced young flamenco dancers ages 10-15. Students take exclusive Festival Juvenil classes together as part of a cohort taught by Festival Flamenco Alburquerque guest artists.

Festival Flamenco Alburquerque truly has something for everyone, including the Flamenco in Your Neighborhood Series, featuring free classes and outdoor concerts produced in partnership with Bernalillo County. The Exposición Flamenca Juvenil features an afternoon of free performances by Flamenco Kids Campers, Festival Juvenil dancers, and local and national student performance groups.

Festival Flamenco Albuquerque is produced in partnership with the University of New Mexico, the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and Bernalillo County, with support from the City of Albuquerque, the National Endowment for the Arts, Heritage Hotels & Resorts, UNM Department of Theatre and Dance, TourSpain, the Albuquerque Hispano Chamber of Commerce Convention and Tourism Department, Acción Cultural Española, the CABQ Urban Enhancement Trust Fund, French Funerals and Cremations, Nusenda, New Mexico Arts, Spain/USA Foundation, the McCune Charitable Foundation, Instituto Cervantes, Martz Accountancy Corporation, New Mexico Mutual, Kei & Molly Textiles, the UNM Latin American and Iberian Institute, Westaf, MidAtlantic Arts, and the New England Foundation for the Arts.

*Note on the name: Alburquerque is spelled the original way, with an extra “r.”