Dancer/Director, Julia Chacón, directs Flamenco Theater, named “Best Flamenco Group in the 2021 Phoenix New Times. A finalist for the Arizona Governor’s Arts Award (2019) and Mayor’s Arts Award (2019 & 2020), Resident Artist at the Musical Instrument Museum (a Smithsonian Affiliate), Julia has a MFA in Dance, MA in Creative Enterprise and Cultural Leadership, and is pursuing a PhD at ASU. A former soloist with the Cuadro de José Galván in Seville, Spain, María Benitez Teatro Flamenco, and Flamenco Vivo, she currently teaches at ASU and throughout the Phoenix Valley. Julia Chacón Flamenco Theater was founded in 2008 under the name, Inspiración Flamenca in Santa Fe, NM. Julia believes in the power of dance to build bridges of connection, which she exemplifies through the expression, power, and art of flamenco. Click here for full bio.

Guitarist, Misael Barraza Díaz –  Born in 1990 in Sonora, Mexico, Barraza is among the most outstanding Mexican guitarists of his generation. He earned his master’s degree summa cum laude from the Master Guitarra Alicante in Spain and a second master’s degree and doctorate from the University of Arizona. In 2023 he released a new flamenco album Camino Forjado. Misael has presented at international guitar events in Spain, Amsterdam, Mexico, across the USA, and Finland, where he won first place in the International Classical Guitar Competition. He completed a three month European tour in 2019 and has played with Flamenco Theatre since 2016.

Dancer, Martín Gaxiola founded and directed the nationally touring flamenco company, Caló Flamenco in Phoenix, AZ. With a cast of 25 artists, it was the largest flamenco repertory company of the time and met with acclaim throughout the United States. A former soloist with María Benítez Teatro Flamenco, Martin toured the USA and abroad prior to forming Calo Flamenco. He has performed with Flamenco Theatre since 2017.

Singer / Guitarist Gaetano was born in New York and raised in Seville, Spain. When Frankel’s family returned to the States, he explored music of the Americas, and rock, new age, and Mexican musical traditions entered his repertoire, resulting in a unique Spanish and Southwestern sound. Frankel became musical director for Lydia Torea’s Artes Bellas Spanish Dance troupe in the 1980s, and later founded Mosaic Flamenco, a band fusing flamenco with his diverse musical interests. Frankel performs regularly and lives between Sedona, the Yucatan, and San Miguel de Allende. He has performed with Flamenco Theatre since 2019.

Flautist and percussioninst Max Perrault was born in Minneapolis, MN and raised in Oxnard, CA and Santa Fe, NM. Encouraged by his father, an artist, Perrault started playing trumpet in school and transitioned to flute at age fifteen. He is primarily self-taught and composed with his brother, Monte, with whom he has performed throughout his life. He is a formative member of Mosaico Flamenco, with whom he recorded three albums and collaborated with international flamenco dancers and musicians performing at Scottsdale’s Hyatt Gainey Ranch. Perrault brings an expressive improvisational style that is a natural fit for flamenco, which he discovered in 1994 working with Spanish dancer, Lydia Torea in Phoenix, Arizona. He is currently working on a recording project, and he has performed with Flamenco Theatre since 2014.

Dancer, Claudia Welding was born in Eugene, Oregon and lived in Spain from 1999-2004 when she moved to Mexico City. Her years living abroad and attending ferias across Spain inspired a love of flamenco and a passion for the art. After returning to the States in 2007, she began studying flamenco with Arizona based artists including Linda Machado, Julia Chacon, and Bernadette Gaxiola, as well as Spanish classical dance with Lydia Torea. Welding-Launer studied in Spain and the U.S. and has performed in various cultural events across Arizona. She has performed with Inspiración Flamenca since 2015

Dancer, Risa Jacobson is from Phoenix, Arizona and began her flamenco studies at the age of ten under Spanish Dance master, Lydia Torea. Later, in California, she studied and performed with Koko de la Isla, with Diana Alejandre’s Arte Flamenco de San Jose, and was a soloist at Café Sevilla in San Diego. Jacobson was a featured singer and dancer at Pepín Tablao Flamenco in Scottsdale with Linda Machado with whom she conducted arts-education outreach in Arizona schools. She is a proud mother of two and has performed with Flamenco Theater since 2016.

Dancer, Liz Polen is from Phoenix, Arizona and studied tap dance extensively prior to discovering flamenco. A gifted actor, she studied Theatre at Gordon College in Wenham, Massachusetts and performed with Cry Innocent in Salem, MA. She is a former teacher and nationally touring actor at Phoenix-based theater company Childsplay and current actor with Playback Arizona. Polen began studying flamenco in 2013 with Lena Jacome and soon thereafter traveled to Spain for brief study with Juana Amaya. She currently studies with Julia Chacón, with whom she has performed at festivals throughout the Phoenix Valley. Polen has performed with Flamenco Theatre since 2019.

Dancer, Daniella Ziade was born in Caracas, Venezuela and started dancing at age four at the prominent flamenco academy Escuela de Baile Tatiana Reyna, where she became part of the Compañía Infantil Tatiana Reyna, and later joined the Compañía Juvenil Tatiana Reyna. Her training included theatre, ballet, tap, jazz, hip-hop, and flamenco guided by some of Venezuela’s top performers, including Siudy Garrudo, and international flamenco artists such as Farruquito and Antonio Canales. She later performed as an actor, then joined the Agrupación Juvenil Flamenco de Venezuela, founded and led by dancer Daniela Tugues. Ziade moved to the U.S. in 2020 and returned to flamenco in 2023. This is her first year performing with Flamenco Theatre.

Dancer, Francisca Ivon Nava began her flamenco training under Laura Moya in Phoenix, AZ. She was a formative member of Flamenco por la Vida under the direction of Angelina Ramirez and performed in “Mujeres,” directed by Yumi la Rosa. She performs regionally as guest artist and instructor with Chayito Champion in San Antonio, Texas. Francisca has performed with Inspiración Flamenca since 2015.
*Spanish Legacies performances only.

Singer, Olivia Rojas is from El Paso, TX. Her versatile background in traditional Mexican and Choral music coupled with her wide vocal range allows her to capture a depth of expression. An emerging artist, Olivia is sought-after by flamenco companies across the USA and has worked with the National Institute of Flamenco, Sachiko La Chayi, EmiArte Flamenco, and others. She co-directs Flamenco por la Vida in Phoenix, AZ and has worked with Flamenco Theatre since 2015.

Flautist, Diana Schiable studied flute and classical guitar at the University of Idaho and holds a master’s degree in flute performance from the University of Arizona. She was principal flautist for the Arizona Symphony, a member of the Fred Fox Graduate Wind Quartet and playde in the UA Wind Ensemble. She performed in Canada, Mexico, Ireland and the USA. She is a teaching artist for the Tucson Unified School District and maintains her own studio. She has worked with Flamenco Theatre since 2019.

Emerson Laffey is a professional drummer and multi-percussionist from Phoenix, AZ.   He began playing drums over 20 years ago and earned his BA in Music from Arizona State University. Versed in flamenco, jazz, Brazilian, gospel, R&B, salsa and rock, he plays with groups throughout the Valley. He has appeared with Flamenco Theatre since 2016.

Pianist and composer, Ioannis Goudelis  has performed, recorded and opened for artists such as Stevie Wonder, Dierks Bentley, Ray Price, Mike Stern, Stanley Jordan, Pantelis Thalassinos and Alexia Vassiliou. His original music has been featured on t.v. shows like “House,” “NCIS,” and a few of HBO’s series. In 2011, he scored the feature film “The Church Office,” and appeared on “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” in 2012 with Miss Willie Brown. He has appeared with Flamenco Theatre since 2016

Guitarist, Roger O’Sullivan has studied under Monte Perrault, Kristofer Hill and Juan del Gastor. He travels to Spain annually to study and play in Seville. Roger has played with Inspiración Flamenca since 2015.

Lydia Torea – A touring soloist and dance partner with José Greco for many years, Lydia is a living legend of Spanish dance and a master of Spanish Classical. An American pioneer in Spain under the reign of Franco, Lydia made headlines in Spain as a young dancer. She trained with Regla Ortega and Vicente Escudero and danced in the cuadro of the Coral de la Moreria in the 1960’s. She was a soloist touring with Paco de Lucia and Pedro Azorín, whom she also partnered. She has performed for royalty and had a featured role in the film “Ship of Fools” with Vivien Leigh. Her company, the Lydia Torea Spanish Dance company, included los Bronces Gitanos.

Lydia was a featured artist in the 2021 museum exibition, Spanish Legacies: 75 Years of Spanish Dance in Arizona exhibition at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts.

Dini Roman (guest speaker) – A touring dancer with Maria Alba, Ramon de los Reyes, Ximenez-Vargas Ballet Español, Mariano Parra, and others for many years, Dini was among the early Americans to study Spanish dance in Spain under the reign of Franco. Dini performed with and directed the Flamenco Theater of San Francisco for four years, serving as the second director after founder Adela Clara. Dini was a close associate of ethnic dance ambassador La Meri (1899-1988) and taught many years at Meri’s Ethnic Dance Festival on Cape Cod. She appeared numerous times at Jacob’s Pillow and was an emissary of flamenco, working with companies across the United States.

Dini was a featured artist in the 2021 museum exibition, Spanish Legacies: 75 Years of Spanish Dance in Arizona exhibition at Scottsdale Center for the Performing Arts.

José Mendez is a flamenco singer from Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Hailing from the flamenco family of la Paquera de Jerez, Mendez is sought after for his expertise in singing for dancers. A singer in the legendary flamenco tablao Los Gallos in Seville, Spain he has worked with flamenco legends of our time including Carmen Ledesma, José Galván, Maria Pages, and many others. He was featured with Flamenco Theatre in October, 2015 in Scottsdale and Peoria, AZ.

Myriam Vaquero is a disciple of the legendary Carmen Ledesma with whom she has shared the stage in Sevilla and abroad. She studied extensively with la Faraona of the Farruco Family and is a master of bulerías and tangos. She was featured with Flamenco Theatre in October, 2015 in Peoria and Scottsdale, AZ with José Mendez.

Meagan Chandler discovered a passion for Flamenco at age 14. She moved to Jerez de la Frontera, Spain to dance, but was drawn into the cante, the singing that is at the root of the Flamenco tradition. In Spain, she studied under Ana Maria Lopez and La Chiqui de Jerez. In the USA she quickly found work as a flamenco singer, moving to New Mexico where she learned to accompany the dance, studying and playing with Yiyi, Chuscales, Julia Chacon, Joaquin Gallegos, Jesus Muños, Felix de Lola and many others. She has worked with Flamenco Theater since its inception in 2008.

Dancer, Tamara Sol Flys trained with Lydia Torea and Dini Román. Flys was as a member of Torea’s Artes Bellas and appeared in Torea’s televised performance, “Flamenco Fireworks” at the Phoenix Symphony Hall and Chacon’s choreography in “Sabor y Ritmo” at Los Angeles’ Century Club. An ASU alumni, she also holds a Ph.D. and MPH from Johns Hopkins University. Tamara lives and teaches in Santa Fe, New Mexico. Her first performance with Flamenco Theater was in 2009.
*Spanish Legacies performances only.

Soloist, La Lea studied many years with Spanish dance masters at el Amor de Dios in Madrid, Spain. She performed in the 9th annual Certamen de Coreografía in Madrid in an award winning piece and has toured the US twice with Romería Flamenco. She was a soloist with Inspiración Flamenca from 2015 – 2018.

Dancer, Carlos Montufar directs World Dance Collective in Phoenix, AZ. A former dancer at the Riviera Hotel and Casino in Las Vegas, he trained with Joaquin Encinias at the National Conservatory of Flamenco in Albuquerque, NM where he also performed with Yjastros, the National Flamenco Repertory Company. He performed with Flamenco Theatre from 2014 – 2019.