PUTNEY, Vt. – Next Stage Arts presents multidisciplinary flamenco artist Laura Sanchez with her work “Welcome to Holland!?” on Sunday, Nov. 24, at 7 p.m., at Next Stage Arts, 15 Kimball Hill in Putney.
Step into a world of resilience and inspiration with “Welcome to Holland!?,” a breathtaking multidisciplinary flamenco performance that will touch your heart and ignite your spirit.
“A one-woman theater show using flamenco dance that highlights the value of motherhood certainly jumps into the imagination. We like delivering a wide range of programming full of diversity and opportunity,” says Keith Marks, executive director of Next Stage Arts. “Laura’s work in Boston is well known. She weaves her experience as an immigrant and as a mother into a narrative that is witty, thought-provoking, and heartfelt. We’re excited to bring this to our community.”
Join us for a transformative 75-minute journey that beautifully intertwines flamenco, poetry, humor, and film, celebrating the incredible strength of caregivers. Experience the story of an immigrant mother as she navigates her unique “Holland!?” – a landscape reshaped by trauma. Watch as everyday objects transform into powerful symbols of hope, guiding her through challenges and illuminating the path to belonging. This transformative journey challenges stereotypes about motherhood and disability, shedding light on the diverse experiences of caregivers, and fostering empathy towards nontraditional families.
Don’t miss this immersive theatrical experience that invites you to reflect, connect, and celebrate a world where we all belong.
Sanchez is an award-winning flamenco artist, creator, choreographer, and educator originally from Cadiz, Spain. She began her flamenco education as a child, and received professional training from the Dance Conservatory of Madrid. Sanchez holds a professional certificate in expressive arts therapies from Lesley University, where she developed an emerging therapeutic dance practice, Expressive Flamenco. She presents this work internationally, and continues to serve annually as guest professor for the Lesley University expressive therapies master’s program. Her most recent research work was published at the Journal of the American Dance Therapy Association in 2021.
Sanchez actively performs as a soloist in flamenco venues in the Eastern U.S., and placed third at the 2016 Flamenco Certamen USA, an international competition that takes place in NYC annually. She has worked as an independent choreographer for organizations including Boston College of Fine Arts, the Boston City Council, Bridgewater University, and Kingston Theater, among several others. Laura also works as an independent producer, and has presented several flamenco shows over the past 10 years in Massachusetts. In her latest production, “Flamenco at Starlight,” she brought the flamenco community back together to perform for the first time in Cambridge since the Covid pandemic. Sanchez’s commitment to building community has made this show an annual event.
During the pandemic, she created an award-winning short film, “After Dark,” to tell the resilient story of a community affected by Covid. She has received funding from the prestigious Live Arts Boston grant led by the Boston Foundation, Next Steps to Dance, and NEFA’s dance fund. She has been a recipient of the Mass Cultural Council Choreography Award in 2021, and was honored to be a member of Flamenco Vivo Carlota Santana Professional Consórcio Flamenco, a group dedicated to growing flamenco on the national stage, in 2020.