Flamenco

Chat with Juan del Valle

On 3/14/20 we had an opportunity to chat with Juan del Valle who relocated from San Francisco to Hilo, Big Island in the spring of 2019.  Juan had been an established flamenco dancer based in San Francisco and touring internationally; he performed and taught classes many cities around U.S. including Washington DC, and for Maria Benitez in Santa Fe New Mexico. He retired from performing about 10 years ago but still teaches classes.

He graduated from UC Berkeley with a bachelor’s degree in biology, which he balanced while performing with other bay area based artists including Fanny Ara, Yaelisa (Caminos Flamencos), Monica Bermudez, La Fibi, and San Francisco’s Theater Flamenco along with guest artists from Spain such as Jose Galvan, Pastora Galvan, and Manuel Betanzos. When he was asked on his graduation day what he planned to do with his biology degree, he replied, “I am headed to Sevilla in two weeks to continue flamenco studies...... obviously.” 

While he was studying flamenco with famous bailaores like Farruquito, he started receiving invitations to perform in tablaos and kept performing regularly in Seville.  He was even invited to perform in one of Israel Galvan’s theatrical creations at the Teatro Central in Sevilla where Juan says humorously that he “portrayed various insects. That was during Israel’s Kafka phase. It was a very abstract, rhythmically complex and challenging piece to perform, but what an experience!”  In his humble manner, Juan admitted he was not the greatest dancer Sevilla ever witnessed, but his passion, focus, commitment, and reputation for dependability were always appreciated. We can tell the reason he was hired at well-known venues was not only for being a reliable dancer, but also for the high quality of his dancing.  He was/is an excellent dancer with a style that is both strong and elegant, which is assumed to come from a combination of his natural talent and his dedication to this art form as well as countless hours of training and practice. 

Juan with fabulous Fanny Ara 

Juan has connections with flamenco figures that Hawaii flamenco lovers are familiar with.  He used to perform with Monica who did a couple of shows and many workshops in Hawaii.  Juan also helped young Lakshmi get an engagement in a tablo in Seville where he was dancing, although Juan says all he had to do was introduce her and they could immediately see her extraordinary talent. Juan and Lakshmi danced as partners for a season in Sevilla prior to staging a series of performances in Los Angeles and San Diego.  Soon she became a much-demanded female dancer due to her “puro” baile influenced by Manuela Carrasco.  On nights when Lakshmi was performing, Juan always noticed a lot of gitanos came to see her dance, and Lakshmi used to call Juan her “primo” so they would know she was not out at night without a male family member.  As we know, Lakshmi is still performing as a respected dancer in Seville, which is marvelous considering the fact that she is originally from San Diego.  One of the most memorable performances for Juan, as well as one of the most nerve wracking he can recall, was when he and Lakshmi came out on stage in a tablao, and couldn’t help but notice the first two rows of seats were occupied by the Montoya (Farruco) family. Needless to say, Juan and Lakshmi gave it all they had for that show.

Before retiring from performing in 2010, he did a theatrical dance collaboration with former Cirque du Soleil aerial silk dancer Rose Nisker combining fire dance and flamenco with original music compositions by Daniel Fries of Berkeley.  Juan directed two amazing and unforgettable shows produced by Michael Sturtz at The Crucible, Oakland’s vibrant fire and industrial arts center.  The performance was also done outdoors on a mountain lake at an underground music festival. This fusion of flamenco, aerial & fire dance was the first known attempt in the flamenco scene, but Juan has a dream to reproduce and expand this theatrical work in Hawaii using Japanese taiko drumming.  Here is a clip of the indoor show at The Crucible in Oakland, California.

The show at the lake was indeed one of a kind. At sunset leading into a starry night, musicians glided across the lake around a floating stage of dancers with aerial silks suspended above it and torches lighting the scene. It was really a convergence of artists including special guest Kina Mendez, cantaora from Jerez, who had seen one of the indoor shows at The Crucible and wanted to be a part of the lake version of this incredible, surreal show. Kina’s powerful cante magnified the magic of the evening. It was an unforgettable experience for both artists and audience, many of whom were in tears when they came afterward to congratulate the cast.  Maybe we will see a reprise of this performance here in Hawaii, although the cost might be challenging. 

While we are in lockdown with this global COVID19 crisis, we hope the day comes soon when Juan can come to Honolulu for workshops and perhaps one day to present that magical fire flamenco production. We have to hold on to dreams, especially at this difficult time.