Friday + Saturday, April 11 + 12, 7:30 pm, Royal Theatre
Dance Victoria’s 28th season of the World’s Best Dance culminates with the much-awaited presentation of contemporary flamenco troupe Compañía Rafaela Carrasco. On April 11 + 12, the Madrid-based company will transform the Royal Theatre into a surreal dreamscape with the North American premiere of Nocturna (Architecture of Insomnia). Tickets on sale now!
Nocturna takes flamenco performance to a new level. The piece earned Artistic Director and choreographer Rafaela Carrasco the 2023 National Dance Award and the Critics’ Choice Award for Best Dance Show at the XXVII Flamenco Festival of Jerez de la Frontera. As the first-ever flamenco performance featured in the Dance at the Royal Series, Nocturna marks an important milestone for Dance Victoria.
Audiences will experience the sleepless journey of the “Insomniac,” a symbolic figure who chronicles the night’s transformative power. The performance’s soundtrack, featuring live music and singing, enhances its emotional intensity and narrative depth with verses (coplas) written by playwright and poet Alvaro Tato, a long-time artistic collaborator of Carrasco. With unforgettable stage presence and flawless technical mastery, Carrasco and eight female dancers will entrance audiences with precise and dizzying heelwork, and an emotional depth of expression.
Response from Victoria’s local flamenco community has been enthusiastic. Amity Skala, Director of Flamenco Victoria shares:
“Flamenco on Vancouver Island is thriving, and I’m thrilled that Dance Victoria is bringing in a top-quality flamenco company this season! Flamenco offers a vast scope for human emotion and expression, and I anticipate local aficionados, audience members, and the greater dance community falling in love with the living art form that is flamenco.”
After each performance, ticket holders are invited to stay for an onstage post-show chat with Carrasco, facilitated by Rosario Ancer, Artistic Director of Flamenco Rosario. The company will also facilitate a free masterclass as part of Dance Victoria’s Community Engagement programs.
Dance Victoria’s presentation of Compañía Rafaela Carrasco is made possible with generous support from Season Sponsor Derma Spa, Lead Presentation Sponsors Luxe Home Interiors and Andy Stephenson of Sotheby’s Realty, and with public support from the Government of Canada, Canada Council for the Arts, Government of BC, BC Arts Council, and the CRD Arts Development office.
About Compañía Rafaela Carrasco
Madrid-based flamenco dancer, choreographer, and Artistic Director Rafaela Carrasco founded her company in 2002 on a quest to update the flamenco art form and uplift the tradition to new heights. Originally from Andalusia in Southern Spain, flamenco is a style that blends poetry, song (cante), music (toque), dance (baile), polyrhythmic handclapping (palmas), and finger snapping (pitos) to create soulful and emotionally gripping performances. Carrasco’s career and work have been shaped by a firm dedication to exploring and uncovering flamenco’s vital essence. Her approach evolves the genre through deep-rooted knowledge, respecting its origins while pushing artistic boundaries. Over the years, Carrasco has expanded the flamenco vernacular in collaboration with artists and creators across disciplines, including playwright and poet Alvaro Tato. Together, they produced Born a Shadow (2017) and Ariadna, Al hilo del mito (2020), two works that garnered international acclaim, and the award-winning Nocturna (Architecture of Insomnia) (2023). Carrasco is celebrated as “one of the most important flamenco dancers of the younger generation, and a revolutionary creator of cutting-edge flamenco choreography […] who boundlessly explores new concepts while maintaining the essence and integrity of true flamenco” (Vida Flamenco).
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Compañía Rafaela Carrasco
Friday + Saturday, April 11 + 12, 7:30 pm
Royal Theatre
How to Buy Tickets
Phone: The Royal or McPherson Box Offices at 250-386-6121 or toll free at 1-888-717-6121 Monday to Friday, 10:00 am to 5:00 pm (Royal Theatre is closed 1:00 to 1:30 pm)
Online: DanceVictoria.com
Visit the Royal and McPherson Theatres website for current Box Office details.
SINGLE TICKET PRICES (NON-SUBSCRIBER PRICING)
| Loge | $130.25 |
| Premium | $120.25 |
| A | $99.50 |
| B | $83.50 |
| C+ | $44.75 |
| C | $34 |
Discounted Pay Your Age (ages 12 to 29) and Night Moves (ages 30 to 45) tickets are also available.
About Dance Victoria
Dance Victoria brings the World’s Best Dance to the Royal Theatre and supports the development of new dance for the international stage from our studios in Quadra Village. Dance Victoria is a non-profit charitable society with the mission to cultivate a connection to dance by presenting and supporting diverse local, national, and international artists, and inspiring all communities through the magic of dance. Our vision is that everyone in Greater Victoria can experience the transformative power of world-class dance. DanceVictoria.com
Media Materials
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Media Contact
Anne-Sophie Cournoyer
Marketing Manager, Dance Victoria
[email protected]
250-595-1829