Artists H–P

La Triana is a Chilean flamenco singer, dancer, educator, and director whose practice brings together cante and baile. Trained in Spain, she has developed a professional career across both singing and dance. Her appearance as a guest artist with Arte y Pasión in Sonidos de Libertad brought an international flamenco perspective to the San Antonio production and connected the work to a broader network of artists across the Americas and Spain.

Carmen “La Chiqui” Linares is a dancer, teacher, and founder and artistic director of Raíces de Arte Español. Born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, she trained in ballet and classical Spanish dance before receiving a government scholarship to study in Spain. Her decades of teaching and performance have shaped generations of flamenco and Spanish-dance artists in San Antonio.

José “El Patriarca” Linares is a flamenco guitarist, teacher, and co-founder with Carmen “La Chiqui” Linares of the companies that established their Spanish-dance legacy in San Antonio. Through decades of live accompaniment and instruction, he helped shape generations of local dancers and musicians and sustain the Linares family’s flamenco tradition.

Luis “El Tiburón” Linares is a San Antonio flamenco guitarist, dancer, singer, and educator from the Linares family tradition. The son of guitarist José “El Patriarca” Linares and dancer Carmen “La Chiqui” Linares, he grew up within Raíces de Arte Español and has performed in tablaos, festivals, and collaborative productions across Texas and beyond.

Isabella Longoria, also known as “Isa,” is a San Antonio dancer, instructor, and choreographer connected to the San Antonio Parks and Recreation Cultural Division. City records document her as a student of the program and later as an instructor, while public programs credit her as both a dancer and choreographer. Her trajectory reflects the program’s intergenerational mission: students returning as teaching artists and community leaders.

Timo Lozano was a Texas-born flamenco dancer and master teacher whose career linked San Antonio to the international flamenco world. He began dancing as a child, trained in San Antonio with Berta Almaguer, joined José Greco’s company in 1967, and later became the first non-Spaniard to teach at Madrid’s Amor de Dios. Known as the “King of Bulerías,” he returned to San Antonio for Arte y Pasión’s Generaciones in 2010.

Belén Maya is an influential Spanish flamenco dancer, choreographer, and educator known for bringing contemporary movement and theatrical experimentation into dialogue with traditional flamenco. The daughter of flamenco artists Mario Maya and Carmen Mora, she has developed an internationally recognized career spanning performance, choreography, collaboration, film, and teaching.

Belinda Menchaca is a San Antonio dancer, educator, and Education Director at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center, where she has worked since 1992. She created the Guadalupe Dance Academy, has led the Dance Program, and continues to teach flamenco to children and adults while overseeing classes, outreach, workshops, and youth programs.

Carlos Menchaca is a Chicano flamenco dancer and choreographer who began training in folklórico, ballet, and flamenco at the Guadalupe Cultural Arts Center with his aunt, Belinda Menchaca. He later joined Yjastros: The American Flamenco Repertory Company and developed a practice that honors flamenco history while challenging gender conventions through traditional and avant-garde performance.

Mia de Lourdes is a San Antonio–born flamenco dancer based in Madrid. She began studying flamenco at age four, trained with Olivia Chacón, and developed a professional career in Spain rooted in live tablao performance. Her 2026 return to San Antonio to perform with her childhood mentor brought that artistic journey full circle.

Marisol Flores Millican is a San Antonio dancer, educator, and owner and artistic director of Alma Gitana Dance Company. A UTSA graduate and school educator, she leads flamenco and folklórico instruction for students of different ages and experience levels while directing public performances across the city. Her work links classroom teaching, cultural tradition, and independent dance-company leadership.

Mark Molina is a San Antonio dancer, teacher, and artistic director of Ballet Folklórico de San Antonio. He has studied Mexican folklórico and Spanish flamenco, performed in the United States, Mexico, and Spain, and helped lead the company with Boni Ramos since 1999. His work connects rigorous dance training with cultural preservation and public performance.

Monica Moncivais is a San Antonio flamenco dancer and instructor shaped by Carmen “La Chiqui” Linares’s classical flamenco tradition. A former member of Danza Hispana, she has performed with local companies and at venues including Carmens de la Calle, taught at Academia de Arte Flamenco, and appeared in WeFlamenco Fest programming and Lisa Perello’s flamenco fashion productions.

Teo Morca is a flamenco dancer, choreographer, and master teacher whose career connected generations of flamenco artists in the United States. A longtime mentor to San Antonio artists, Morca appeared in major Arte y Pasión productions including Generaciones and Pasión, and his teaching helped shape the development of San Antonio’s contemporary flamenco community.

Francisca Ivon Nava is a Phoenix-based flamenco dancer and instructor who began training with Laura Moya and later studied with Julia Chacón. A formative member of Flamenco por la Vida, she has developed a career rooted in performance, teaching, and the transmission of flamenco across the Southwest. She performs regionally and has frequently appeared in San Antonio with Chayito Champion, contributing to the continuing exchange between flamenco communities in Arizona, Texas, and beyond.

Alma Navar is a San Antonio flamenco dancer and daughter of Jackie “La Morena” Rodriguez-Navar. She began in Círculo de Piedras, connecting her early dance experience to a multigenerational San Antonio flamenco lineage and to the community-based transmission of the art through families, teachers, and local ensembles.

Alex Nicholas is a San Antonio percussionist and founder of Fortuna Flamenco. Through live performance and collaboration, he supports flamenco dancers and musicians with rhythmic accompaniment while helping expand the city’s active flamenco community.

Timo Nuñez is a flamenco dancer, choreographer, singer, and educator from Santa Barbara, California. He trained in Spain with artists including Farruquito and has appeared on World of Dance and So You Think You Can Dance, as well as working as a consultant on Dancing with the Stars. He directs Timo Nuñez Arte Flamenco in Santa Barbara.

Francisco “Yiyi” Orozco is a Barcelona-born flamenco singer and percussionist from an Andalusian family. A professional performer from childhood, he developed an international career across Europe, Asia, the Americas, and the United States. In San Antonio he appeared in productions including Generaciones and Flamencos and performed with EntreFlamenco and Arte y Pasión. He is also associated with SonDeBaril as a singer, percussionist, and musical director.

Alejandro Pais Iriart is an Argentine-born flamenco guitarist and composer who began studying flamenco guitar after moving to the United States. He founded La Juerga Flamenco Ensemble, toured with dancers and singers across the U.S., and later settled in Madrid, where he became a regular guitarist in the city’s tablaos. His work links the U.S., Texas, and Madrid flamenco communities through performance, accompaniment, and collaboration.

Stephanie Pedraza is a flamenco singer and dancer whose work brings cante and movement into conversation. Through performances and collaborations with flamenco artists in Texas and beyond, she contributes a versatile, expressive voice to contemporary flamenco.

José Perelló

José Perelló was a guitarist in San Antonio’s flamenco community and part of the ensemble for Generaciones in 2010, a production that brought together dancers and musicians of different generations. Guitarist Christopher Arispe identifies Perelló as his flamenco teacher beginning in 2005. Through performance and mentorship, Perelló helped pass the city’s live-accompaniment tradition to a younger generation of musicians.

Sources: San Antonio Express-News, Generaciones (2010); Christopher Arispe, artist biography.