Thursday night, July 11 will mark special occasion for Lia Grainger and Fin de Fiesta Flamenco when they perform their latest show, Sempiterno, on the Shuswap Theatre stage.
While the international Flamenco music and dance ensemble has performed in Salmon Arm before, their Thursday show will be their 100th in Canada – and the first performance of their 25-show national tour.
“We’ve spent the better part of a decade creating work in Spain and then annually bringing it back home — the only flamenco artists in Canada to do so,” says Grainger, a founding member of Fin de Fiesta Flamenco, who has family in Salmon Arm.
On a less joyful note, this year marks the last chance to see the original founding members perform together.
“Sadly, after this tour, guitarist and founding member Dennis Duffin… will leave the group to make his home in Spain year-round.”
A year was spent composing and choreographing the ensemble’s latest offering, Sempiterno, described as “a hypnotic new production that explores the timeless yet ever-changing art form of flamenco.”
Excited to announce that Fin de Fiesta will be touring our new show in France in June and Canada in July and August! Rehearsals in Sevilla in May ... stay tuned for dates and ticketing info! pic.twitter.com/AVkPaFynGT
— Fin de Fiesta (@FinDeFiestaFlam) March 24, 2019
The name Sempiterno means “eternal” or “everlasting,” as Flamenco is as an art form – constant, yet evolving.
“In Spain today, the stars of flamenco like Israel Galván and Rocío Molina use contemporary dance, jazz, electronic music and modern projections to tell their stories, moving further and further away from the traditional,” explains Grainger. “It is in evolution that is without end, and Fin de Fiesta Flamenco is a part of that evolution.
“Sempiterno also tells the story of the eternal magnetic pull of the flamenco art form, a pull that has drawn Fin de Fiesta Flamenco’s members away from the countries where they were born, and to Spain, as it has done to generations of international musicians and dancers.”
Read more: Exploring the wild and unrestrained side of flamenco
Read more: Feel the power of Flamenco
Read more: Celebrating rhythms of Spain
Grainger, from Vancouver, works out of the hallowed Amor de Dios studio in Madrid, as does flautist Lara Wong (Vancouver), an extraordinary improviser and accompanist in the city’s acclaimed flamenco clubs. Duffin (Toronto) is based in Seville, Andalucía — the cradle of Flamenco — where he composes and collaborates with a unique community of flamenco artists from around the world. Singer Alejandro Mendía (Saint Lô, France) and his wife, dancer Deborah “La Caramelita” (Vancouver) make their home in Bordeaux, France, and percussionist Hanser Santos Gómez (Havana) has called Montreal home ever since emigrating from Cuba five years ago.
Fin de Fiesta has been touring Canada since 2013, says Grainger, and “everywhere we’ve gone over the years, whether a tiny town (Saturna Island, pop. 350) or a capitol city (Toronto), we’ve been greeted by halls and theatres filled to bursting with Canadians eager to experience this rare window into another culture.”
The Salmon Arm show on July 11 is from 7:30 to 9:30 at Shuswap Theatre. Tickets, $22, are available online at eventbrite.ca.
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