Renowned Spanish dance artist Israel Galván will showcase his mesmerising flamenco reinvention Fla.Co.Men at this year’s Malta International Arts Festival
Israel Galván’s trailblazing flamenco dance show Fla.Co.Men will soon be performed for one-night-only in Malta as part of the 2019 Malta International Arts Festival.
Considered a dance genius of his generation, flamenco and Spanish dance artist Galván is famed for his intricate, complex and rapid footwork – and in Fla.Co.Men, he has updated the art of flamenco dancing with an inspired, avant-garde twist that verges into surrealism, comedy and mystery.
“Flamenco is almost an attitude, an energy. It shows character in a manner of speaking,” explains Galván. “Flamenco is very versatile, in the sense that it is free and open to the different interpretations that each individual dancer or the public might make. With Fla.Co.Men there is even greater proximity to the public, so I look them in the eye, and I play with this. It is a voyage of sensations and, as the name of the work suggests, it plays with disarranging and deconstructing flamenco, while still being definitely flamenco. That is the reason why we have changed the order of the syllables and call it Fla.Co.Men.”
As a nationally-celebrated, multi-award-winning artist – who has also received the Medal for Fine Arts in 2012, Spain’s most prestigious award in the arts – Galván is considered one of the most innovative figures in the world of contemporary flamenco. A critic from The Daily Express in the UK even highlighted that “to call Galván a brilliant dancer is like saying Einstein was pretty good at physics. I have never seen anything remotely like him”.
Galván is joined on stage in the Malta production of Fla.Co.Men by a small group of talented musicians and singers, who interact with and accompany him as he shares his unique flamenco-driven choreography on the MIAF main stage in Valletta, today.
The 14th edition of the MIAF, taking place until July 14 and produced by Festivals Malta, will showcase a mix of local and international talent in several unique venues in an island-wide celebration of artistic innovation and cultural heritage.
There will be only one performance of Israel Galván’s Fla.Co.Men today at 9pm on the Malta International Arts Festival 2019 main stage at Boat Street (Il-Fossa), Valletta. For tickets and more information regarding the festival, visit the site below.