Flamenco Tablao

FLAMENCO TABLAO

Thursday May 28

8pm (doors at 7pm)

Lana Lou's Restaurant - 362 Powell Street

Experience the thrill of live flamenco music and dance as it was meant to be seen and heard - up close and intimate.

Touring Toronto-based dancer and choreographer Lia Grainger of Flamencolía Dance Company performs her only Vancouver date this season, and will be joined by Victoria-based flamenco guitar phenom Gareth Owen who has recently returned from study in Spain, and Vancouver's own Kelty McKerracher on vocals.

This is the first time these three esteemed flamenco artists have taken the stage together in what promises to be a joyful and powerful performance.

The performance takes place on the 79th birthday of Vancouver flamenco legend Oscar Nieto. Oscar is currently hard at work on his archival projects, preserving archival materials from his own long and storied career, as well as materials from his mentor’s career, Lola Montes.

Tickets to this event are $30, but there are also options to purchase a ticket for $50, $60 or $100. $30 covers the cost of putting on the show, and anything beyond that will support Oscar’s important archival work. We are hopeful that Oscar himself will be in attendance, so that we may all raise a glass to his continued leadership of Vancouver's vibrant flamenco community!

Lia Grainger - Dance

Born in Vancouver, Lia Grainger began her flamenco dance training in 2002, studying with renowned local maestros Oscar Nieto and Kasandra “La China.” She cut her teeth performing at local flamenco tablao Kino Cafe and with Vancouver’s Mozaico Flamenco Dance Theatre, before relocating to Toronto and then Seville, Spain, to devote herself full-time to flamenco dance. From 2015 to 2019, Lia lived and trained full-time in Spain, first in Seville and later in Madrid, returning home to perform at festivals and arts centres across Canada. Lia was one of six North American flamenco dancers selected to compete in the 2017 CERTAMEN USA, a competition that takes place annually at Lincoln Center in New York City. In 2019, Lia founded Flamencolía Dance Company in Toronto. The company’s recent work. “La Forastera,” was nominated for a Dora Mavor Moore Award for Outstanding Peformance by an Individual. Flamencolia.com

Gareth Owen - Guitar

Gareth Owen is a world-class flamenco guitarist based in Victoria, B.C. He has collaborated with many internationally renown flamenco artists including guitarists Jesus Álvarez and Gaspar Rodriguez Roman, singers Coral de los Reyes and Miguel Rosendo, and dancers Domingo Ortega and María “Cha Cha” Bermudez.

Gareth has recorded two solo albums, “Gareth Owen Flamenco Guitar” and “El Cobre”. He has also appeared on Alma de España’s CD, “Flamenco Live”. His third solo CD is currently in production and will be released later this year.

He has performed solo concerts in Calgary, Victoria and Haida Gwaii, as well as tablao performances in cities across Canada and at the “Tablao El Laga” in Jerez de la Frontera, Spain. Gareth has had the honour of performing in the Toronto and Vancouver International Flamenco Festivals, Dawson City Music Festival, and Victoria Flamenco Festival. Theatre-scale flamenco productions have included “Café de Chinitas” in Vancouver, Alma de España’s “Recuerdos” and “Pasajes” in Victoria, “La Palabra en el Tiempo” in Vancouver and Victoria and Sonidos Gitanos’ “Convivencia” at El Portal Theatre in Los Angeles.

Gareth enjoys collaborating with his wife, professional dancer, Denise Yeo, and fostering the flamenco community in Victoria, BC through the Alma de España Flamenco Dance Company and School.

Kelty McKerracher - Song

Kelty Jean McKerracher (she/they) is a queer settler, flamenco performer, community-engaged artist, and lawyer living in Coast Salish territories. She discovered flamenco at Vancouver’s Kino Café at the age of 18 and has been a passionate aficionada of the form ever since. Kelty studied baile (dance) with Oscar Nieto and Kasandra Lea of Al Mozaico Flamenco Dance Academy, traveling to Andalucia, Spain and New Mexico for intensive study. Between 2010 and 2017, Kelty led a flamenco dance troupe in the Downtown Eastside neighbourhood and produced Barrio Flamenco: Flamenco for the People for the DTES Heart of the City Festival. In 2023, Kelty began studying flamenco cante (song) in earnest, spending four months at Fundación Cristina Heeren in Sevilla, Spain. Since then, she has returned to Sevilla each year to continue studying with her teacher, Pura Navarro.

Kelty's recent performances include "KIN" with AJ Simmons exploring queer flamenco, and "OSCAR: Homage to the Rebel Maestro of Flamenco", a celebration of Oscar Nieto’s storied life and career.

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