[et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Social Sharing Buttons ” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ custom_margin=”0px|0px|0px|0px|true|true” custom_padding=”0px|0px|10px|0px|false|true” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.21.0″ background_size=”initial” background_position=”top_left” background_repeat=”repeat” max_width=”1280px” custom_padding=”0px|0px|0px|0px|false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][dssb_sharing_buttons icon_placement=”icon” columns=”6″ icon_width=”fixed” alignment=”left” icon_color=”#111111″ use_custom_icon_size=”on” icon_font_size=”16px” icon_bg=”#f4f4f4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” border_radii_main=”on|4px|4px|4px|4px” border_radii_icon=”on|4px|4px|4px|4px” border_width_all_icon=”1px” border_color_all_icon=”#f4f4f4″ border_color_all_icon_last_edited=”off|desktop” global_colors_info=”{}” border_color_all_icon__hover_enabled=”on|hover” border_color_all_icon__hover=”#111111″][dssb_sharing_button _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][dssb_sharing_button social_network=”twitter” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][dssb_sharing_button social_network=”whatsapp” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][dssb_sharing_button social_network=”telegram” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][dssb_sharing_button social_network=”email” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][dssb_sharing_button social_network=”copy” _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/dssb_sharing_button][\/dssb_sharing_buttons][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][\/et_pb_section][et_pb_section fb_built=”1″ admin_label=”Header & About” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”0px||||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||||false|false” collapsed=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.20.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.20.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”25px” text_line_height=”35em” background_layout=”dark” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
The great revolutionary of flamenco dance, the most inspiring, the most daring, has left an impressive legacy. Many consider him the inventor of current Spanish ballet and the most complete dancer to date. For another part of the dance field, he was not such a good dancer but he was very effective. Almost without funds, watching his memorabilia being auctioned off and confined to a wheelchair, he only asked that he not be forgotten. Certainly, there are many reasons to listen to him. <\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”2_5,3_5″ _builder_version=”4.20.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”2_5″ _builder_version=”4.20.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Fotografia-dAntonio-el-Bailarin-dedicada-a-Aurora-Pons.jpg” alt=”Photo by Antonio for Aurora Pons. IMAE” title_text=”Photo by Antonio for Aurora Pons. IMAE” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.21.0″ text_font=”Nunito||||||||” text_font_size=”18px” text_line_height=”1.8em” header_font=”||||||||” header_2_font=”Fredoka One||||||||” header_2_text_color=”#262f72″ header_2_font_size=”36px” header_3_font=”Fredoka One||||||||” header_3_font_size=”26px” animation_style=”slide” animation_direction=”top” animation_intensity_slide=”5%” animation_starting_opacity=”100%” locked=”off” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
[\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_font=”Domine|500|||||||” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” header_4_font=”Domine|700|||||||” header_4_font_size=”20px” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n
Seville, 4-11-1921. Lola Soler and Paco Ruiz. He had three sisters and two brothers. One of her sisters, nicknamed Pastora Soler, also took up flamenco dance. <\/p>\n <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”3_5″ _builder_version=”4.20.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/musicadanza.jpeg” alt=”Photo from the 2021 exhibition of the Community of Madrid. ” title_text=”Photo from the 2021 exhibition of the Community of Madrid. ” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” width=”75%” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”157c9479-86af-4d73-aa94-eddce5666a5c” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Antonio Ruiz Soler wanted to be a dancer at all costs. Not just any one: the best. Life didn’t make it very easy for him.<\/p>\n On November 4, 1921, Antonio Ruiz Soler, Antonio “El Bailar\u00edn”, came into the world. He was born in a neighbourhood that has produced great flamenco artists, the Alameda de H\u00e9rcules, in Seville. La Pompi, El Gloria and Manolo Caracol, among them. <\/p>\n He had 5 siblings and his family was not rich in economic resources. In fact, a couple of sisters had to go live with their aunt. <\/p>\n This difficult situation was not so much a matter of the parents’ lack of work as the fact that the father was an alcoholic and disappeared weeks after squandering the money. Lola, their mother, carried all the weight of raising her children. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Un-pequeno-Antonio-El-Bailrin-en-Sevilla.jpg” alt=”A little Antonio Ruiz Soler” title_text=”A little Antonio Ruiz Soler” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n In some letters from the dancer kept by the Community of Madrid, he writes:<\/p>\n “I remember, since I was five years old, that I would be a dancer and that my life was destined for the theater.”<\/em><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n When that little boy told him at home that he wanted to dance, his father would make fun of him by calling him contemptuously “the dancer.” He considered that dancing was “sissy”, as Antonio himself explained in his memoirs. <\/p>\n In spite of everything, his childhood was a happy one. From the age of four, he looked for any opportunity to escape to the streets and chase Juan, an organ grinder who roamed the neighborhoods of Seville. The two teamed up to split the profits from their performances. The boy had such a grace that the tips were very numerous. <\/span><\/p>\n For Antonio, returning home with pockets full of coins reinforced his idea of dedicating himself to dance while helping his mother. <\/span><\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n His mother, seeing that he was very talented, enrolled him in the academy of the famous master Realito. To pay for the three pesetas a week, he made an agreement with the boy’s aunt to wash and iron his clothes. And all this, in secret. Later on, seeing how quickly the little boy learned everything and his great talent, the teacher would give him free lessons. <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_testimonial _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” body_font=”Domine||||||||” body_text_color=”#000000″ body_font_size=”18px” body_link_text_color=”#C12A21″ global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Maestro Realito, Manuel Real, was always present in the life of Antonio Ruiz Soler. This teacher was well known among the Andalusian bourgeoisie for, among other things, teaching Sevillanas. Realito was a nationally and internationally recognized flamenco performer. Antonio recalled in their conversations that he was the one who taught him how to dance with sticks (castanets).<\/a> <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_testimonial][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n At that Realito academy, Antonio met the woman who would be his dance partner for 22 years. Florencia P\u00e9rez Padilla, known as Rosario, was a few years older than “El Bailar\u00edn”, but Manuel “Realito” brought them together because they were both thin and small. It was the beginning of a world-famous dance couple for 22 years.<\/p>\n They immediately participated in the flamenco group of their teacher, who performed at the Sevillian April Fair, various festivals and private homes. A pianist from that group called them thePetits Sevillanos.<\/em> <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/antonio-rosario-chavalillos-kM0E-510×349@abc.jpg” alt=”Rosario and Antonio. Community of Madrid Archive” title_text=”antonio-rosario-chavalillos” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Community of Madrid Archive They received ovations and applause. Subsequently, in 1929, they performed at the Ibero-American Exhibition in Seville for the Spanish kings, Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia,<\/span> and changed their artistic name to “Los Chavalillos Sevillanos” on the advice of the man who began to be their representative. <\/p>\n Their debut together was at the Teatro del Duque in Seville in 1928. The following year, they danced before the King and Queen of Spain, Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia, at the Ibero-American Exposition in Seville. The following year, they danced before the King and Queen of Spain, Alfonso XIII and Victoria Eugenia, at the Ibero-American Exposition in Seville. <\/p>\n So I continued to increase his fame and thus the opportunities abroad. His first international gig took place in Belgium, in 1930, on the occasion of the Li\u00e8ge Exhibition (Belgium).<\/p>\n They also expanded their circle of well-known artists. In Madrid, its premiere took place at the Fuencarral Theatre in 33, with the company of La Ni\u00f1a de los Peines and Pepe Pinto, no less. There, those kids<\/em> would rub shoulders with La Macarrona, Juan Mendoza Rodr\u00edguez, Ni\u00f1o de Utrera or Ni\u00f1o Ricardo. Without stopping learning from the great artists they came across and, at the same time, earning money, they arrived in Barcelona in 1936. <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_testimonial _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” body_font=”Domine||||||||” body_text_color=”#000000″ body_font_size=”18px” body_link_text_color=”#C12A21″ global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n Without stopping learning from the great artists they came across and, at the same time, earning money, they arrived in Barcelona in 1936. In the circumstances of life, they would find that the militias occupying their neighborhood forced them to act for free and even in various places in France. Antonio couldn’t get in touch with his family. Rosario, on the other hand, had her mother nearby, as she used to travel with her during her shows. The solution was yet to come…<\/p>\n [\/et_pb_testimonial][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”2%||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n While in Marseille, they met the variety entrepreneur Marquesi. He offered them to go to work in Argentina and go on a tour of South America. They didn’t think much about it. They set sail for Buenos Aires on a steamship named Florida. A historic meeting took place in the Argentine capital. Antonio Ruiz Soler would enter in the company of Carmen Amaya.<\/a>The greatest flamenco dancers joined their talents on the stage of the Teatro Maravillas with the show “Las maravillas del Maravillas”. <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row column_structure=”1_3,1_3,1_3″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/Antonio-Ruiz-SolerRosario-y-Carmen-Amaya.jpg” alt=”Antonio, Carmen Amaya and Rosario. Buenos Aires. Foto: Danzaarte. ” title_text=”Antonio Ruiz Soler, Rosario and Carmen Amaya” force_fullwidth=”on” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/antonio_el_bailarin-exposicion.jpg” alt=”Rosario and Antonio. Exhibition of the Community of Madrid. ” title_text=”antonio_el_bailarin-exhibition” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][et_pb_column type=”1_3″ _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_image src=”https:\/\/allflamenco.net\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/11\/La-pareja-de-baile-triunfa-en-Mexico.jpeg” alt=”The dance couple triumphs in Mexico. PHOTO: CADF” title_text=”Dance couple triumphs in Mexico” _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” enable_caption_text=”on” global_colors_info=”{}”][\/et_pb_image][\/et_pb_column][\/et_pb_row][et_pb_row _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” custom_margin=”0px||0px||false|false” custom_padding=”0px||0px||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_column type=”4_4″ _builder_version=”4.21.0″ _module_preset=”default” global_colors_info=”{}”][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n When Carmen Amaya went on tour, Antonio and Rosario stayed on the headliner and decided to create another piece of their style. It would be the beginning of his own choreographies. It is also when they begin to perform classical dance works and not only flamenco. <\/p>\n After the good reviews, they continued to receive offers of tours throughout South America until they reached Mexico. They were hired at a venue called El Patio for almost a year. Until Marcel Ventura, a well-known representative in the country, gets them a contract to perform for nine months at the Copacabana Casino in Rio de Janeiro. Later, they would land at the Waldorf Astoria in New York. <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_text][et_pb_testimonial _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” body_font=”Domine||||||||” body_text_color=”#000000″ body_font_size=”18px” body_link_text_color=”#C12A21″ custom_margin=”2%||2%||false|false” custom_padding=”2%||2%||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n In one of their performances in Rio de Janeiro, they were seen by the director Arturo Toscanini, who proclaimed, with enthusiastic applause, that the dances of Rosario and Antonio were “the soul of Spain”. In addition, it helped them settle in the U.S. <\/p>\n [\/et_pb_testimonial][et_pb_text _builder_version=”4.22.1″ _module_preset=”default” text_text_color=”#000000″ text_font_size=”20px” text_line_height=”32em” custom_margin=”2%||||false|false” custom_padding=”2%||||false|false” global_colors_info=”{}”]<\/p>\n The American public loved everything about flamenco. Sabicas on guitar, Carmen Amaya, Jos\u00e9 Greco and Pilar L\u00f3pez, among others, triumphed. With Rosa and Antonio Ruiz Soler, they multiplied their passion for this art and everything related to its dance. They went so far as to dance for President Roosevelt at the White House and posed for Salvador Dal\u00ed in New York.<\/p>\n
<\/span>
Madrid, 06\/02\/1996 <\/span><\/p>\nParents and siblings<\/strong><\/h4>\n
Antonio Ruiz Soler is a child prodigy<\/h2>\n
Meet your perfect dance partner<\/h2>\n
Heading to America<\/h2>\n
Record Sellouts in U.S. Theaters<\/h2>\n