September 20-28, 2025
ALL tickets on sale Now!
September 20 & 21: FREE outdoor events at Picnic Pavilion Granville Island
Alliance Française
September 23| Be/Sois (Short film)
September 24-26 Waterfront Theatre
September 24| Palabra Flamenco (Victoria)
September 25| Seffarine (USA/Morocco/Spain/Iran/Cuba)
September 26 | Karen Flamenco (Vancouver)
Vancouver Playhouse
September 27| Flamenco Rosario (Vancouver/Montreal/Mexico/Spain)
St James Community Square
September 28| La Música del Flamenco | The Mel Lehan Hall
Caroline Planté (guitar) José Díaz El Cachito (voice)
Masterclasses & Workshops
September 20 |Free Introductory Class with Rosario Ancer (Flamenco Rosario)
Scotiabank Dance Centre
10:00 am -11:30 am
Intro/ Basic
September 24 | Masterclass with Manuel Gutierrez
Scotiabank Dance Centre
5:00 pm -6:30 pm
Intermediate/ Advanced
September 28 | Masterclass with Macarena López
Scotiabank Dance Centre
10:00 am -2:00 pm
Basic/ Intermediate/ Advanced
September 28 | Cante (Voice) & Palmas (percussive hand clapping)
with José Díaz El Cachito (Spain)
St James Community Square
3:00 pm – 5:00 pm
Check back for Festival updates on our website and social media platforms.
Tickets and Info : www.vancouverflamencofestival.org
Select events are FREE and ticketed shows range from $30 to $60 plus taxes and service charges.
In its 35th year, the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival celebrates the passion and support of the community that has made this important milestone possible.
Through connection, commitment, and perseverance, the festival honours its history while looking ahead to the future of flamenco.
The 2025 edition features a strong lineup of Canadian and international artists, presenting live performances, masterclasses and workshops from September 20 to 28. This year’s festival offers both ticketed and free events. Audiences will experience powerful and diverse programming by artists from Spain, the United States, Mexico, Cuba, Iran, Morocco and Canada.
Festival highlights include Soulfulness by Flamenco Rosario at the Vancouver Playhouse in celebration of 35 years of passion and dedication with a showcase of ensemble and solo works. Guest musicians José El Cachito’ Díaz (voice) and Caroline Planté (guitar), long time collaborators with Flamenco Rosario, will also present a special music concert at the Mel Lehan Hall.
The program also features Karen Flamenco’s Vivaldi‘s Four Seasons, blending classical music with flamenco; Palabra Flamenco’s Dark Sounds, an exploration of poetry and flamenco from Victoria; and Seffarine, an internationally recognized group that combines flamenco with world music traditions (Co-presented by Caravan World Rhythms).
Picnic Pavilion | Granville Island
267 Old Bridge Walk, Vancouver
FREE Event
Saturday, September 20 | 2:00 pm to 5:30 pm (performances occur on the hour)
Sunday, September 21 | 1:00 pm to 5:30 pm
11:00 am to 11:30 am Free class especially for children (times subject to change)
11:45 am to 12:30 pm Free basic introduction to flamenco for adults (times subject to change)
2:00 pm to 5:30 pm Performances occur on the hour
A showcase of some of BC’s rich tapestry of flamenco artists.
We are pleased to present the work of local and provincial flamenco dance and music artists, including a performance for children on the Picnic Pavilion stage.
ALLIANCE FRANÇAISE VANCOUVER
Tuesday, September 23 | 7:00 pm
BE / SOIS Short Film Screening, Live Guitar Performance & Artist Talk (Montreal/Vancouver/Salt Spring Island)
Co-presented by Alliance Française
Social conditioning suffocates the human, confining them in a tunnel with no light.
In her world, the dancer explores and transcends the duality within herself. Aspiring to become a simple atom, she merges into the planetary spiral. This atom grows, revealing a hidden light. The revelation is simple: we know nothing, we are a particle in the infinite universe. Be nothing. Be
WATERFRONT THEATRE
Wednesday, September 24 | 8:00 pm
DARK SOUNDS Palabra Flamenco (Victoria)
Community partner Vancouver Writers Fest
Palabra Flamenco features dancer Denise Yeo, guitarist Gareth Owen, and poets Garth Martens and Jan Zwicky. Together, in Dark Sounds, these artists fuse North American speech with the intensity of flamenco to offer urgent truth-telling about our cultural and planetary situation, the dark core of sex, family, love, of being human. After eight sold-out shows and a devoted following in Victoria, the ensemble now brings this urgent and unforgettable experience to Vancouver for the first time.
Thursday, September 25 | 8:00 pm
DE FEZ A JEREZ Seffarine (USA/Morocco/Spain/Iran/Cuba)
Co-presented by Caravan World Rhythms
The musicians of Seffarine include soulful Moroccan singer Lamiae Naki and flamenco guitarist Nat Hulskamp, supported by master musicians of diverse cultures, who together embrace and extend this rich legacy. Their exciting performances masterfully combine Moroccan and Arabic-Andalusi music with Manuel Gutierrez’ explosive flamenco footwork, Bobak Salehi’s kamancheh ornamentation and Yosmel Montejo’s grooving basslines. These diverse backgrounds meld, creating what SoundRoots describes as “an ear-caressing blend of sounds from Spain and North Africa, spiced with a bit of fiery instrumentation and percussion.”
“Seffarine’s music can melt the coldest hearts” -Chicago Reader
Friday, September 26 | 8:00 pm
VIVALDI‘S FOUR SEASONS Karen Flamenco (Vancouver)
Classical Music and Flamenco
Karen Flamenco Dance Company will take you on a venture in their newest production of Vivaldi’s Four Seasons reinterpreted by composer Max Richter. With live flamenco accompaniment by Gerado Alcala flamenco guitar and Justine Reinhart cantaora. Choreography by Karen Pitkethly, Timo Nunez & Fanny Ara.
Audiences will be taken through an emotion of seasons each with their own story to be told.
VANCOUVER PLAYHOUSE
Saturday, September 27 | 8:00 pm
SOULFULNESS Flamenco Rosario & Guests (Vancouver/Montreal/Mexico/Spain)
35 years of passion and dedication Gracias, Vancouver!
Inspired by our past, we are encouraged by the possibilities of the future.
An evening of ensemble pieces and solos, both traditional and contemporary flamenco works by Flamenco Rosario dancers and international guest artists; Macarena López, Pilar Fernández, Caroline Planté, José El Cachito’ Díaz and Davide Sampaolo.
ST. JAMES COMMUNITY SQUARE MEL LEHAN HALL
Sunday, September 28 | 8:00 pm
LA MÚSICA DEL FLAMENCO (Spain/Montreal/Vancouver)
Our acclaimed musical guests, Gypsy José El Cachito Díaz (voice) and Caroline Planté (guitar), return to the stage after their performances with Flamenco Rosario to present a traditional flamenco music concert in an intimate setting.
Opening the evening are local artists Jafeline Palacios (voice) and Gerardo Alcalá (guitar).
MASTERCLASSES
Dance Masterclass with Manuel Gutierrez
Wednesday, September 24 | 5:00 pm 6:30 pm
Scotiabank Dance Centre, 7th Floor
Level: Intermediate Advanced
Registration
General: $70
Prices do not include GST
The Telegraph in London called his work “Fiery.” Danse Magazine nicknamed him, “The Young Flamenco Prince.” Le Figaro Newspaper raved “The dance is strong, voluptuous, and spectacular… a profound type of Flamenco and incredibly explosive.”
Dance Masterclass with Macarena López
Sunday, September 28 | 10:00 am 2:00 pm
Scotiabank Dance Centre, 7th Floor
Level: Basic Intermediate Advanced
Registration
General: $50 $75
Members: $45 $67.50
Prices do not include GST
A dancer and creator from Seville, Macarena López stands out for her work at the intersection of flamenco dance and contemporary experimentation. Awarded as a Soloist at Madrid’s Choreographic Contest, she has performed with the Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía and artists like Arcángel and Estévez/Paños.
Cante & Palmas (Song and Hand Clapping)
Instructor: José El Cachito‘ Díaz
Sunday, September 28 | 3:00 pm 5:00 pm
St. James Community Square Mel Lehan Hall
Registration
General: $100
Members: $80
Prices do not include GST
A hands-on class to connect with flamenco through voice and rhythm.
Open to all levels, the class explores traditional lyrics, basic rhythms like tangos, bulerías, and fandangos, and the use of palmas to support the compás.
Ideal for dancers, musicians, singers, and anyone looking to experience flamenco in an authentic and accessible way.
Introduction to Flamenco with Rosario Ancer (Flamenco Rosario)
Saturday, September 20 | 10:00 am 11:30 am
Scotiabank Dance Centre, 7th Floor
Let us introduce you to the art of flamenco. This class is designed for those with little or no flamenco experience. No special shoes are required just wear comfortable clothing.
Participants will receive an overview of flamenco techniques including:
- Compás (flamenco rhythm)
- Zapateado (basic footwork)
- Palmas (hand clapping)
- Braceo (arm and hand work)
The session ends with a short dance sequence that brings all elements together.
Registration / FREE
About the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival (VIFF)
Since its beginnings in 1990, VIFF has nurtured the form’s hybridized roots in Sephardic, Persian, Gypsy, and Indian cultures and grown a mature and deeply rich understanding of flamenco to reach across Vancouver’s multicultural audiences. As one of a few celebrated festivals devoted to Flamenco Art in North America, we continue to invest in, reflect, and connect its diverse sociocultural identity through varied artistic narratives, underlining flamenco’s universal message of humanistic tolerance. An annual event, the festival lends its visibility throughout multiple venues and locales in Metro Vancouver including the Waterfront Theatre, Vancouver Playhouse, Scotiabank Dance Centre, Alliance Francaise, and St. James Community Square Mel Lehan Hall. Driven and artistically curated by the internationally renowned Flamenco Rosario, the festival is a flamenco hub in the city, inviting and presenting emerging voices alongside established international artists. With over three decades of flamenco presence, we continue to build upon both steadfast and new relationships across the nation, helping to forge a more integrated and worldly Canadian identity of flamenco.
The Vancouver International Flamenco Festival was founded by Flamenco Rosario in 1990. Flamenco Rosario holds a mandate to develop dance, and music works and dance artists and musicians, in both the authentically traditional and contemporary innovative styles of flamenco. The company shares its passion for flamenco’s raw, emotional power and disciplined musicality through performances, workshops, and professional training across Vancouver. Under the direction of Artistic Director Rosario Ancer and Musical Director Victor Kolstee, the company was founded in 1989. Flamenco Rosario registered as a non-profit society in BC in August 1997 under the legal name Rosario Ancer Flamenco Arts Society, achieving registered charity status in 1999. As an interpreter of flamenco dance, Artistic Director Rosario Ancer is interested in the continuing growth and evolution of the art form, rather than simply reiterating its past. The company explores the possibilities of flamenco by crossing boundaries of history and culture, incorporating dancers from other dance traditions, international dance artists, musicians, and vocalists into the development of new work. Ongoing activities for Flamenco Rosario include the popular In-Studio Series featuring traditional dance styles, the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival showcasing local, national, and international guest artists, ongoing classes and residencies, mentorships, and mainstage performances supporting artistic experimentation. The company continues to honour the rich flamenco tradition and to produce presentations which stretch the boundaries and evolution of the art form. In 2024, Rosario Ancer is the Artistic/Executive Director of Rosario Ancer Flamenco Arts Society, continuing to pursue the shared dream of cultivating a flamenco legacy in memory of the late Victor Kolstee.
Please visit the festival website for more info: http://www.vancouverflamencofestival.org/