With their inaugural show “Songs from a Sinking Ship,” founders of the San Francisco nonprofit Flamenco Arts International aim to showcase the historic Spanish art form for both longtime fans and newcomers.
“This show is for everyone. Flamenco itself is a very captivating art form that has universal appeal. It’s an outpouring of emotions with multiple entry points: the dance, rhythm, music and song,” say veteran flamenco artists Marina Elana and Isabel del Día, describing the piece coming to Z Space in San Francisco on March 28-30.
Inspired by classic seafaring tales of sirens luring sailors through tempestuous waters, the work-in-progress presentation, say the duo, is “a story anyone can relate to …even without understanding flamenco’s complex music or rich multicultural history.”
They add, “We can all feel the intense emotions that radiate from the stage and speak to our shared humanity.”
The seed of “Songs from a Sinking Ship” came from a brainstorming session that Elana and del Día had with British filmmaker Yvonne Zhang, a creative consultant on the project.
The flamenco artists, longtime friends who established their careers in New York, call the show a metaphor for issues people face today: “It made us question all the reasons why we do not take action. This applies on so many levels: internal strife, unhealthy relationships, against injustice and even when our very existence is being threatened. We realized that it’s not just complacency. There are so many ways that we convince ourselves that the boat is not sinking, or that it’s someone else’s responsibility. Blaming others. Denying the truth that’s right before our eyes.”
Elana and del Día don’t shy away from political implications that might be drawn from the work. After all, the term “flamenco” began as a cultural shorthand for Spanish officials to identify Romani people and used to scapegoat them.
The contemporary parallels aren’t lost on the FAI duo: “The political history of flamenco factors into everything we do, and why we do it. Many of [flamenco’s cultural originators] suffered terrible poverty, discrimination and hardship—especially the Gitano (Roma) populations. … Music and dance brought these communities together as an outcry against societal ills, a call to action, and a celebration of resilience.”
Elana—a dancer, choreographer, educator, film enthusiast and artist-in-residence at Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco who graduated from Stanford University, and del Día, a dancer, teacher, producer and arts administrator—co-founded Flamenco Arts International in 2024 to honor and innovate flamenco, bring it to wider audiences and to boost the local scene.
Mentioning that the dance establishment and arts have favored “what’s branded as ‘classic’ or ‘contemporary,’ leaving a vibrant tradition like flamenco sidelined in the public sphere,” they add, “We should ask ourselves why and how a hierarchy came to define these categories. And what continues to contribute to this bias? These divisions risk missing the true heart of dance.”
And lamenting the exodus of artists who cannot afford to live in the Bay Area, they say, “There is an urgent need to rebuild, reengage and reinvigorate.”
However, acknowledging flamenco practitioners and fans still here, they say, “We created FAI to help restore and expand the impact flamenco has had in the Bay Area as an integral communal practice that provides a sense of belonging, outlets for expression and opportunities to bridge cultures and generations.”
Pending the reception of this week’s Z Space production, the FAI artists already are planning for a more elaborate interpretation of “Songs from a Sinking Ship.” They say, “On a very practical level, we’re hoping to attract presenters and press to help launch our company. But we also want to engage with people from all walks of life here in the Bay Area to connect with this vibrant community.”
Flamenco Arts International’s “Songs from a Sinking Ship” is at 7:30 p.m. March 28-29 and 2 p.m. March 30 at Z Space, 450 Florida St., San Francisco. Tickets are $38-$85 at flamencoartsinternational.org.
Charles Lewis III is a San Francisco-born journalist and performing artist. He has written for the San Francisco Chronicle, KQED and more. Dodgy evidence of this can be found at The Thinking Man’s Idiot.wordpress.com.