The dancer had been ill for a long time before succumbing on July 20th – due to health reasons he was unable to appear at last year’s Festival de Cante de las Minas de la Unión which was dedicated to him - and his disappearance marks the end of a golden age when young flamenco artists did not have access to resources or funding, and success was achieved by lots of hard work, something Gades was never afraid of. There is not likely to be another like him, with so much dedication and so much talent.

Manolete, the dancer from Granada has told us “he sacrificed everything for the art, and with just three or four grand choreographies, he went round the world and back”. Manolete’s brother, the late guitarist Juan Maya ‘Marote’ worked for Gades for eight years and the two shared a strong friendship. In 2001 Marote told this story: “Gades was very hard-working...he got to where he is today because he deserved it. I remember once when we were in Madrid, at three o'clock in the morning, with my brother Manolete, with el Güito, my cousin Mario Maya, and Antonio Gades came by with this car he had, a little Seat 600, and he says "look where I just came from!". He stuck his shirt out the car window and squeezed it and water came out...from rehearsing...at three o'clock in the morning! And he went on to become Spain's most complete dancer”.

“He sacrificed everything for the art” Manolete

He was discovered and sponsored by dancer Pilar López, thirty years his elder, when Gades was 16. Today, doña Pilar was profoundly affected by the death of her protegé for whose artistic name and dignified elegant style she was responsible over a half century ago.

Gades’ appearance along with Carmen Amaya in the 1963 film “Los Tarantos” where he interpreted an unforgettable farruca in the streets of Barcelona, brought his name to the forefront and many young dancers began adopting his line and mannerisms. Pablo Picasso and Joan Miró were great admirers of his.

From that point on, his career took a new direction and Antonio Gades brought his art to the world’s most important venues and festivals, in addition to cinema, with the films of director Carlos Saura ("Bodas de Sangre" (1981), "Carmen" (1983) and "El Amor Brujo" (1985), picking up major prizes every step of the way. Then came the major theater productions, in particular Fuenteovejuna, a perfect, hermetic work whose success confirmed Gades as one of the great choreographers.

Antonio Gades with Cristina Hoyos

In 1978 Antonio Gades was the first director of Spain’s Ballet Nacional. In an interview which appeared two years ago in the Spanish newspaper EL País, Gades explained that he wanted to do something with the traditions, capture the essence and expand upon it. His last wish was the creation of a foundation devoted to supporting Spanish dance.

Estela Zatania