Jose
Antonio
Jury member of Benois de la Danse
Born in Madrid, he begun his dance studies being very young. He made his first performance as a dancer at the age of eight in Buenos Aires, begining his professional career in Spain with the Compañía de María Rosa.
His professional career is defined by two main aspects: his deep vocation as dancer and his wide work as director.
In 1965, he joined “Antonio y los Ballets de Madrid” as First Dancer and, later (1972) founded his own company together with Luisa Aranda, the “Ballet Siluetas”. His was First Dancer at the Ballet Nacional de España (BNE) since the company foundation (1978), under the direction of Antonio Gades and, in 1982, First Dancer and Artistic Codirector at the Ballet Español of Madrid. Three years later, he returned as First Dancer to the BNE, then directed by María de Ávila. And he became Director of the same Ballet Nacional de España from 1986 to 1992.
In 1994, he founded the company «José Antonio y los Ballets Españoles» and, in 1997, was commisssioned as Director at the Centro Andaluz de Danza and at the Compañía Andaluza de Danza (CAD). In 2004, he is again in charge of the direction at the Ballet Nacional de España.
Also, he combines his work as dancer with the choreographic creation. From his wide production, outstand the works created for Carla Fracci (La Gitana), the Kirov Theatre (Goya divertissement), Julio Bocca and the Ballet Argentino (Versus Vitae), the Ballet Nacional de España (Laberinto, Con mi soledad, Romeras, El Sombrero de Tres Picos, Fandango de Soler, Don Juan, Romance de Luna and Carmen), The Ballet Español de María Rosa (Bodas de sangre), the Universal Fair of Sevilla (La Gallarda, by Rafael Alberti, and La Truhana, by Antonio Gala), the Compañía Andaluza de Danza and the Centro Andaluz de Danza (Encuentros, Picasso: paisajes and La Leyenda), the María Giménez Company (Arrope and Blanco y Negro) and for Aída Gómez (Salomé). El Café de Chinitas is his most recent creation, premiéred at the Castell de Peralada Festival in 2004.
In 2005, he is awarded with the Medalla de Oro al Mérito en las Bellas Artes, given by the Spanish Ministry of Culture. He has, among other honours, the Premio Nacional de Danza (Dance National Prize), given by the Spanish Ministry of Culture in 1997, the Medalla de Honor from the Granada Festival (1999) and the Medalla de Honor 2004 given by the Fundación de Danza Alicia Alonso.
Gallery