ES LA HORA CIUTAT FLAMENCO: With Eli Ayala & Nacho Blanco. Direction Hansel Cereza

Just a few words, barely whispered, telling the bullfighter: “Maestro, it’s time.”

The ceremony of putting on the bullfighter’s costume is a moment of silence and transformation where the naked body of the maestro is covered with a second skin or protective shell of sensuality and beauty. A few instants of reconciliation with one’s own being, a deep examination that prompts questions with no answer. And then the bullfighter continues dressing up for the encounter with death, in a confrontation where fear is measured against courage and serenity is the arbitrator of skill and style.

The artistic and stage director Hansel Cereza is a multidisciplinary artist in constant evolution. Throughout his career he has experimented with a wide range of formats and artistic trends in many countries, and this makes him one of the most complete European stage directors. His career began in the early 1980s as a member of the team that founded the company La Fura dels Baus, whom he was linked to for over twenty years as an actor, stage director and artistic creator.

He has directed dance, theatre and circus shows and publicity actions, as well as macro events and the opening acts of international events. Cereza has shared the stage as an artistic director with great flamenco artists such as Eva Yerbabuena, Antonio Canales, La Moneta, Marina Heredia and the National Ballet of Spain.

Nacho Blanco and Eli Ayala dance / Miguel Valenzuela “Viruta” bullfighter’s assistant / Hansel Cereza artistic director / Salvador Boix bullfighting consultant / Dani Tejedor music composer / Eloi Isern music composition assistant