Joaquin Cortes

Joaquín Pedraja Reyes, better known as Joaquín Cortés (Córdoba, February 22, 1969) is a Spanish dancer, choreographer and producer.

Biography

Early years

He was born in Córdoba in 1969, into a gypsy family. Very soon she moved to live in Madrid, where, at the age of twelve, she began her studies in dance. At fourteen years of age he was admitted as a member of the National Ballet of Spain.

Joaquín Cortés traveled with this company to many cities around the world, dancing in important theaters such as the Metropolitan Opera House in New York and the Congress Palace of the Moscow Kremlin. At sixteen he ascends to the rank of soloist and for the next three years he will perform as principal dancer. With this company he will travel all over the world.

In 1988, at the age of 19, he decided to leave the National Ballet of Spain. It was then that he was invited to participate in the Géants de danse gala at the Champs Elysées Theater in Paris, France, along with dance figures such as Maya Plisétskaya, Sylvie Guillem or Peter Schmalfuss.

At this time he created the choreography for the opera Carmen for the Arena in Verona, Italy. She also participated in the Summer Flamenco Festival in Tokyo, Japan or the Lincoln Center galas in New York, United States. He decides to found his own company: Joaquín Cortés Ballet Flamenco.

Debut: Cibayí

In 1992 he created his first work Cibayí and with it he made his debut at the Champs Elysées Theater in Paris. In this work Cortés performs two solos: a soleá por bulerías and a farruca. Cibayí represents the popular consecration of the artist.

At its presentation at the Albéniz Theater, the "no seats" sign was posted for twelve days. Later, he was in various places such as: the Córdoba Guitar Festival, the Zarzuela Theater, he also performed in Russia in two dance sanctuaries, the Bolshoi Theater in Moscow and the Kirov Theater in Saint Petersburg, he continued with his success in France, Italy, Japan, Venezuela and the United States, inaugurating what would later become regular circuits for his company.

In that same year he performed several choreographies for the Spanish group Mecano, appearing in the video clip Una rosa es una rosa for the Aidalai Tour, dancing as a couple with the singer Ana Torroja.

In 1993 he was named universal Spanish in Miami.

Gypsy passion

In 1995, he created his second work: Pasión gitana, premiered that year at the Albéniz Theater in Madrid. The costume design for this work was due to his friend, designer Giorgio Armani. In his four years of touring he traveled to more than forty countries and was seen by more than one and a half million people, highlighting performances such as those at the Spoleto Festival, Radio City Music Hall in New York, the Universal Amphitheater in Los Angeles, the Caracas Polyhedron, the Tokyo Forum, the Royal Albert Hall in London and Ipanema beach in Rio de Janeiro.

In 1995 he made his first advertising spot as the image of the Seat Ibiza Passion. She later debuted in cinema with the film La flor de mi secreto directed by acclaimed director Pedro Almodóvar, where she also created a choreography with the dancer Manuela Vargas accompanied by the music of Miles Davis. In the same year she repeated the experience with another feature film: Flamenco directed by Carlos Saura.

In 1996 Joaquín Cortés was asked to bring his work Gypsy Passion to the Special Red Cross Show gala at the Royal Albert Hall in London.^{[citation required]}

During this tour he visits places as diverse as Canada, Australia, South Korea, Japan, China, Russia, Turkey, Lebanon, United Arab Emirates, Brazil, Mexico and Iceland.

In 1997, he recorded his first CD: Gypsy Passion Band, with the songs from this last work, in which he himself participated on percussion. This group performed with a concert at the Montreux Jazz Festival, Switzerland. In this same year he collaborated with the tenor Luciano Pavarotti to raise funds for the Spoleto Festival, in which the price of tickets was between 200,000 and 500,000 lire. Thanks to this charity concert the Spoleto Festival was able to continue over time.^{[citation required]}

In 1998 he was invited to present his work at the Expo '98 in Lisbon.^{[citation required]} With all this the work of Pasión gitana becomes the most viewed Spanish work in the world.^{[citation required]}

1999-2009

In January 1999 he moved to New York, where he came into contact with other trends in the world of dance and music. She studies contemporary dance. There she began her collaboration with choreographer Debbie Allen, with whom she participated in the 71st Oscars ceremony at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in Los Angeles.

This year it is chosen as the advertising image for Codorniu's Rondel cava for Germany. Advertising Spot directed by award-winning director Andrew Douglas.

In April of this same year, the Joaquín Cortés Gitana Foundation was created in Spain for the dissemination, dissemination, promotion and development of gypsy culture and art. In August, he plays Hercules at the Opening Ceremony of the VII World Athletics Championships. They present him as the mythical and immortal founder of the city of Seville, who comes to crown the winners of these games with olive branches. His interpretation of the character of Hercules closes the gala broadcast on television for the whole world. ^{[ citation needed ]}

During this year he was chosen as the image of the advertising campaign of the Italian tights firm Pompea. At the end of the year, Joaquín Cortés held a special gala in Rome due to the currency change from the lira to the euro; The show was held at the doors of the Roman Coliseum, and various Italian personalities were invited to attend the gala.

On October 14, his third work, Soul, premieres at the Tívoli Theater in Barcelona. The gypsy “soul” of Joaquín Cortés is recognized worldwide. He visits cities as diverse as London, Beijing, Shanghai, Hong Kong, Milan, Rome, Tokyo, Osaka, Hannover at Expo 2000, or Beirut at the Beittedine Festival.

In January 2000, filming began on the film Gitano, written by Arturo Pérez-Reverte. It is his first role as a protagonist, acting alongside the model Laetitia Casta and actors Pilar Bardem and Juan Diego. ^{[ citation needed ]}

In February 2001, the Viña del Mar festival in Chile opened. After forty-two editions, for the first time in history a dancer participates in the most important music festival in Latin America.^{[citation required]}

On March 7, 2001, he presented his new show and fourth work: Live at the Royal Albert Hall in London. When Seville, the birthplace of flamenco, hosts Live, the Teatro de la Maestranza is completely filled. The next day, the reviews exceed all expectations. The year closes with a month of performances in Madrid, where the Teatro Nuevo Apolo hangs the “no tickets” sign in all performances.^{[citation required]}

In September of this year, the Puerto Rican pop singer Jennifer Lopez performed the first live concert of her career in Puerto Rico, for which she wanted the dancer Joaquín Cortés to choreograph and dance with her.^{[citation required]}

This year the artist is once again asked to bring his work Live to the Special Red Croos Show gala in Basel.

In 2002 he returned to the Royal Albert Hall in London, and without much rest he continued throughout Europe. To conclude the year on December 11, 2002, Joaquín Cortes is invited to perform at the traditional concert held at the Oslo Spektrum on the occasion of the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize, which would be awarded to former US president Jimmy Carter. The gala concert is presented by Anthony Hopkins and Jessica Lange who were in charge of introducing artists such as Laura Pausini, Carlos Santana, Willie Nelson, Josh Groban, Angelique Kidjo, Jessye Norman, Sissel Kyrkjebø, Michelle Branch, Mari Boine and Suede, which was also attended by the Norwegian royal family.

This year he performed at the 2002 Grammy Awards gala at the Staples Center stadium in Los Angeles, in which he collaborated with the great winner of this edition, the singer Alicia Keys on the song "Fallin'".

During 2003 Joaquín Cortés continues his international tour touring twenty countries. In September 2003, in Rome he stars in the feature film Vanilla and Chocolate alongside the actress Maria Grazia Cucinotta and the Italian director Ciro Ippolito.

On March 15, 2004, he premiered his fifth work at the Diners della Luna Theater in Milan: Of love and hate, a produced work directed and choreographed by himself. It is a show with a contemporary conception that talks about war, hunger, violence, but above all it delves into love. He visits countries such as: Italy, Belgium, Germany, Austria, Spain.

At the same time, Joaquín Cortés continues with his work Live, which continues to achieve success, so he is forced to combine both shows simultaneously.

She also participated in the Fashion Rocks for the Prince's Trust held at the Royal Albert Hall in London with the help of designer John Galliano. The artist performs in the presence of the Prince of Wales.

At the end of May he returns to the Royal Albert Hall in London and later performs in Munich for a week. In the summer she went on a month-long tour throughout Italy. In the month of November he was also on tour in South America and Central America. Ends the year with Portugal and Romania.

On September 15, 2004, he was invited to participate in the Hispanic Celebration Gala, being the first Spaniard to perform at the White House^{[citation required]} along with all the Hispanic American presidents and former President George W. Bush.

During this year he was chosen as the image of the Italian company TIM (Telecome Italia Mobile). And in December 2004, he became the image of the advertising campaign of the Italian sportswear brand Freddy. ^{[ citation needed ]}

On May 3, 2005 he premiered his sixth work, My loneliness, at the National Auditorium of Mexico, continuing from here with a world tour. In August of this year he was invited to perform at the 2005 Aichi World Expo in Japan.

As the costumes for the play were created by designer Jean-Paul Gaultier, in March 2006 he took My Solitude to Europe, starting in Paris, where it was presented at the maison of the designer himself. It was one of the artist's most representative works, traveling to more than thirty countries around the world.

During this year the name of Joaquín Cortés becomes a global signature. The artist created his own brand and began marketing his perfumes for men and women: Yekipe, 24K and Night Show.

During 2006, continuing with his tour, he was chosen as the image of different brands such as Chopard, IWC, La Veuve Clicquot and Samsonite worldwide. He also collaborated with the Rava Foundation in various actions such as the La Fenice theater in Venice for the construction of a children's hospital in Haiti. ^{[ citation needed ]}

In November 2006 he was appointed ambassador of the Roma people by the European Parliament. He was invited to Brussels, where he had an interview with presidents Barroso and Borrell. There he addressed all the European deputies in a speech expressing his feelings for the Roma people. ^{[ citation needed ]}

In 2007 he continued with the tour of his work My Solitude in the Moscow Kremlin. She performs for three weeks in a row on Madrid's Gran Vía, giving a part of the proceeds to the Gitana Joaquín Cortés Foundation to allocate it to charitable projects for the integration of the Roma people.

In July 2007, he performed at the New Seven Wonders of the World gala held at the Stadium of Light in Lisbon, attended by various international personalities, such as the British actor Ben Kingsley, the Indian actress Aishwarya Rai and the winner of two Oscars, Hilary Swank. Astronaut Neil Armstrong, Portuguese soccer player Cristiano Ronaldo, former Spanish director of UNESCO Federico Mayor Zaragoza, and singer Jennifer Lopez also attended.^{[citation required]}

During 2008 he continued visiting different countries such as Romania, Bulgaria, Greece, Portugal and Italy, ending in Spain. This year she carried out the advertising campaign for the Italian luggage brand Carpisa.

In February 2009 he organized two nights with his company at the London Roundhouse, in Camden, in preparation for a new world tour.

Calé

On May 14, 2009, he premiered his seventh work at the Beacon Theater in New York: Calé [Gitano] with which he obtained a great impact, the work was A fusion of the best moments of all his previous creations and dedicated to his mother, with this work he traveled to Mexico, Spain, Greece and the United Arab Emirates among others. In September 2009 she performed at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens built in the 4th century BC. C., first Olympic stadium in history.^{[citation required]} In this same year the artist received the Lunas Prize at the National Auditorium in Mexico City for his work < i>Calé as the best alternative show of the year 2009.

He continued with his Calé tour throughout 2010 around half the world. It was at the beginning of this year that the Government of Spain awarded him the Gold Medal for merit in Fine Arts given by the Prince of Asturias in recognition of his twenty-five-year career.

And this same year is when the artist is named ambassador for climate change by the Vice President of the United States Al Gore. In the month of July the artist once again received the Lunas Award at the National Auditorium of Mexico City for its work Calé as the best traditional show of the year 2010.

On September 15, 2011, the artist is invited to perform at the twenty-fifth Hispanic Heritage Awards (HHAS) ceremony at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. with the attendance of the first Lady Michelle Obama. On November 12 of this year, Joaquín Cortés returns to visit his audience in the United States by performing his work at the L. Knight Center Theater in Miami.

In 2012 he continues with the tour of his work Calé representing it in various cities such as: Madrid, Córdoba, Málaga, Barcelona, Monterrey, Guadalajara, Querétaro, Guanajuato, Puebla, D. F, Buenos Aires Aires, Santiago de Chile, Lima, Caracas, Bogotá, Oporto, Lisbon, Moscow, Saint Petersburg, Batumi, Tbilisi and Istanbul, visiting around twenty countries throughout 2012.

On November 9, he received the keys to the city of Miami from Mayor Regalado. On the same day, the mayor of Miami Beach designated November 9 as Joaquín Cortés Day. In September of this year he was asked by the Georgian singer Sopho Nizharadze to make a video clip for one of her latest singles in which, in addition to the presence of the artist as its protagonist, he was asked to create the choreographies of the same.^{[citation required]}

2013 onwards

During Christmas 2012 and early 2013, Joaquín Cortés performed a new show in the city of Madrid called Dicen de mí, an intimate work in which the artist wants to return to his origins, to his more flamenco roots, accompanied of 18 musicians and three dancers.

In May 2013 he was invited to the Billboard Latin Music Awards Winners Gala and the Latin Songwriters Hall of Fame, both galas held in Miami. On November 2, 2013 he appears at the Fillmore Theater (Jackie Gleason Theater) Miami Beach as the guest star to collaborate in giving impact to other Spanish artists.

At the end of this year he began to create his work Gitano which premiered in March 2014 at the Tívoli Theater in Barcelona. With this work he began a tour of Spain until September 2014. Immediately He is requested to participate as a jury in the first talent show created by Raffaella Carrà for the Italian public television channel Rai 1 called: Forte, forte, forte. In this new television program Joaquín Cortés participates as a jury along with Raffaella Carrà, the actress Asia Argento and the fashion designer Philipp Plein. All of them in search of the new showman and showgirl of Italian television. At the same time, he is requested to work on another talent show on Portuguese television SIC in search of the best dancer in the country in the program Achas que sabers dançar, which is the Portuguese version of i>reality show So You Think You Can Dance, along with the Portuguese actress Rita Blanco and the choreographer Marco da Silva.

During the end of 2014 and beginning of 2015 Joaquín Cortés is traveling from Rome to Lisbon until April 2015, which is when he begins a new tour of his work Gitano throughout Eastern Europe, visiting Bucharest, Moscow, Saint Petersburg or places as remote as Almaty among others.

In 2017 the show Esencia premiered at the Tívoli Theater in Barcelona. In this show the dancer fuses flamenco with salsa and jazz. The music is original and composed by Joaquín Cortés himself and the Carbonell brothers.

In 2021 he became the winner of the second edition of Mask Singer: Guess who sings, as Hedgehog.

Recognitions

In October 1999, UNESCO named Joaquín Cortés Artist for Peace for his extraordinary contribution to the preservation and promotion of the folkloric and artistic heritage of the Gypsy people and for his commitment to the disadvantaged and the promotion of the values of equality, tolerance and solidarity between peoples. UNESCO also named its artistic legacy as Intangible Heritage of Humanity in 2009, years before this designation was even granted to flamenco art itself.

Legacy

The Japanese video game director Hideo Kojima based himself on his image to create Vamp, a character in the Metal Gear Solid saga.^{[citation required]}

Filmography

• The flower of my secretdirected by Pedro Almodóvar in 1995
• Flamencodirected by Carlos Saura in 1995
• Gypsy, written by Arturo Pérez Reverte in 2000
• Vaniglia and cioccholateled by Ciro Ippolito in 2003