WHO AM I

As a child, it took me a long time to walk; I extended my battle against the force of gravity for as long as I could. I like being on the ground, and I also enjoy organic movement, the kind that seems to come naturally. Sometimes I want to be Trisha Brown, other times Pina Bausch, and often I feel like Pippi Longstocking. I was born in Albacete in August 1979. I currently live in Valencia, but I’ve also lived in England, Japan, Mexico, and Lebanon. I started dancing at seven, and until I was eighteen, I studied ballet and Spanish dance at the Conservatory of Albacete. I was told I wasn’t cut out for it, so I studied Journalism in Salamanca. In 2001, I moved to Barcelona, where I began my training in Contemporary Dance, which I completed with a BA from the London Contemporary Dance School and the Takween program in Beirut. As a dancer, I believed my career would be different; I wanted to work with La Última Vez, Rosas, Akram Khan… At one point, I worked with Sol Picó in Barcelona and several times with Silke Wiegand in Germany. In Valencia, I collaborated with Spanish Brass, Pepa Cases, and La Lola Boreal. In 2007, I worked in a theme park in Japan, undoubtedly the strangest thing I’ve done; I had fans and a fixed monthly salary. In 2010, I founded the company EnÁmbar Danza.

I conceive, create, and often dance my own pieces. I’m deeply interested in the moving body and its ability to alter time and space, and I enjoy mixing languages (video, text, dance, music). I firmly believe in hybridization. Apart from creating pieces, I handle the production and communication of my work, and for distribution, I rely on Pro21Cultural. I also teach dance and choreographic composition. I understand the stage and the body itself as playful places capable of generating reflection, encounter, and transformation. I’m interested in dance and everything that revolves around it, even what seemingly has nothing to do with it but can activate it. Humor is an ingredient that is often present in my work. It is very evident in Dance is my heroine, an audiovisual and scenic project that explores the relationship between dance and public space and values the cultural legacy of choreographic repertoire. Another line of my work is based on monstrosity and physical deformation; pieces like Anhel and NANA are examples of this interest. For each project, I seek an artistic team that meets the specific needs of what I envision. On the other hand, it’s rare that I know exactly what I want to do at the beginning. However, there are always three clear driving forces that push me: pleasure, pain, and boredom.

AWARDS:

– Outstanding Creator and Performer for “Anhel” at the Awards of the Association of Dance Professionals of the Valencian Community in 2023.

-“Anhel” Best Dance Show, Best Choreographic Direction – Anna Estellés and Cristina Gómez, and Best Dancer – Paloma Calderón at the Awards of the Valencian Institute of Culture in 2022.

– First Prize at the Bucles-Carme Teatre Choreographic Competition in 2022 for “Anhel.”