David Pérez Almagro
Who is David Pérez Almagro?
David Pérez Almagro was born on January 22, 1982 in Alcalá de Guadaíra, Seville. He trained at the Academia de las Hermanas Villaú in his hometown, in flamenco and classical Spanish dance, with Manolo Marín as his principal teacher, alongside classes with Javier Cruz, Adela Campallo, Alejandro Granados and Manuel Betanzos; he rounded out his training with a scholarship at the Fundación Cristina Heeren and with courses alongside Granero (1996) and Rafael Campallo (1999 and 2001).
Career
He began performing professionally at seventeen, was part of the Al-Guadaira ballet in 1996 and, between 2001 and 2004, was a member of María Serrano’s company, taking part in shows such as “Ritmo”, “Entre flamencos” and “Carmen, pasión flamenca”. He has danced at landmark tablaos such as El Palacio Andaluz, Los Gallos and El Arenal, and has brought his art to festivals and international tours across Taiwan, Germany, Austria, Mexico, Italy, Japan, the United States and Australia.
In 2004 he won “El Desplante”, the top dance prize of the Festival Nacional del Cante de las Minas in La Unión, and in 2006 received the Premio Jóvenes Flamencos de Andalucía. He has taken part in the Bienal de Sevilla, the Chicago Flamenco Festival (2007) and cultural events organized by Spain’s Ministerio de Cultura in Qatar, Kuwait, Gabon and Kenya, serving since 2006 as a kind of flamenco ambassador on international cultural cooperation missions.
Style
He describes himself as a bailaor rather than a bailarín, capable of moving between purist and modern styles, with taranta, soleá and bulería as his signature palos, and cites Eva Yerbabuena and Manuela Carrasco as his main artistic inspirations.
Legacy
His career, still unfolding, combines stage work in tablaos and festivals with an active role in the international promotion of flamenco through official cultural programs, bringing Spanish dance to audiences in contexts far removed from its traditional circuits.