Rubén Olmo

Director

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Biography

Rubén Olmo (Sevilla, 1980) found his love for dance at a very young age. When he was 9 years old, he was admitted to the Conservatorio de Sevilla, where he graduated in Spanish Dance and Classical Dance in 1996. His teachers included Marisol Delgado, José Manuel Moreno and Pepa Coral, among others. During his training years he also took classes at the schools of Manolo Marín, Carmen Montiel and José Galván and did courses with Pedro Azorín, Juanjo Linares, Victoria Eugenia, ‘Manolote’, ‘Güito’, Mario Maya, José Granero, Javier Latorre, Aída Gómez, Nadín Astor, Antonio Canales, Teresa Nieto, Rosa Naranjo and Carmina Ocaña.

His career as a professional dancer started when he was 16 years old with the Compañía de Javier Barón, taking part in the show El pájaro negro, with Belén Maya as principal bailaora. A year later he joined Compañía de Danza Española Aída Gómez, where he performed as solo dancer in the show Estamos solos, choreographed by José Antonio, Javier Latorre and Aída Gómez. He also took part in the Teatro de la Zarzuela production of El barberillo de Lavapiés, choreographed by Ramón Oller.

In 1998, aged 18, he joined the corps de ballet of the Ballet Nacional de España (BNE) under the directorship of Aída Gómez, raising to solo dancer a year later. During his period at the BNE he performed as principal in Luz de alma, with choreography by Javier Latorre; La Celestina, choreographed by Ramón Oller and Adolfo Marsillach as stage director; Poeta, by Javier Latorre; Carmen, by José Antonio Ruiz; Alberto Lorca’s Ritmos; Oripando (Farruca), by Israel Galván; and Grito (Alegrías), by Antonio Canales. In 2002, he decided to leave the BNE and joined the Eva Yerbabuena’s company, although he continued his collaboration with the BNE as choreographer and guest dancer in the production Ángeles Caídos, among others.

Before fulfilling his dream of setting up his own company in 2006, he danced with the Compañía Metros in shows like Carmen and Dalí, directed by Ramón Oller; and Los Tarantos (Musical Flamenco), with choreography by Javier Latorre and directed by Emilio Hernández. He was also principal, choreographer, and assistant director at the Compañía de Rafael Amargo.

For his own company, Rubén Olmo has staged Érase una vez que era, premiered at the Teatro Albéniz in Madrid (2003), Belmonte (Teatro Albéniz in Madrid, 2006), Pinocchio (Teatros de la Villa in Madrid, 2007), Tranquilo alboroto (Teatro Central in Seville, 2010), Las tentaciones de Poe (Teatro Central in Seville, 2012), Horas contigo (Teatro Fernán Gómez, 2018), La muerte de un minotauro (Festival International de Danza de Itálica, 2019), Naturalmente Flamenco (Festival de Jerez, 2019) and Diálogo de Navegante (Bienal de Málaga, 2019).

He taught at the Centro Andaluz de Danza (CAD) from 2008 to 2018 and was director of the Ballet Flamenco de Andalucía (BFA) from 2011 to 2019. While at the head of this Andalusian public company he premiered the shows Metáfora (2012) and Llanto por Ignacio Sánchez Mejías (Jardines del Generalife de la Alhambra, 2012).

He has also collaborated as guest dancer or choreographer with the leading dance companies and artists in Spain. He took part in the shows Permíteme bailarte, by Aída Gómez; Jazzing Flamenco, by Antonio Najarro; La horma de su zapato, by Isabel Bayón; and El amor brujo, by Víctor Ullate. He also performed in the opera El público, by Federico García Lorca, composed by Mauricio Sotelo (Teatro Real, 2015).

Premio Nacional de Danza in 2015, in his career Rubén Olmo has received the Premio Max (2014), the Zapatilla de plata de Indanza (2012), the Giraldillo de Oro at the Bienal de Flamenco de Sevilla (2010) or the Premio de Interpretación de Danza Pilar López (2007). His productions have also been awarded prizes, some including Premio de la Crítica del Festival de Jerez (2019) for Horas contigo or Giraldillo Ciudad de Sevilla (2016) for Toda la vida bailando.

Rubén Olmo has been the director of the Ballet Nacional de España since September 2019.

Birthdate

1980

Place of birth

Sevilla

Multimedia

Foto cartel Centenario Antonio Ruiz Soler (copy MANUTORO)

Foto Estampas Flamencas. Centenario Antonio Ruiz Soler (copy Pablo Guidali)

Foto La Bella Otero (copy Jesús Vallinas)

Entrevistas Centenario Antonio Ruiz Soler

Articles

RUBÉN OLMO DANCES ON EUROPEAN REMEMBRANCE DAY FOR VICTIMS OF TERRORISM

22/03/2021

Since 2005, every 11 March, Europe remembers all the victims of terrorist attacks in an act of acknowledgment and memory of those who died, the survivors and their families. The director of the Ballet Nacional de España took part in the institutional event held on 11 March 2021 on the grounds of Madrid’s Palacio Real, which was presided by the King and Queen of Spain. Rubén Olmo danced his choreography Danza del ave fénix in a majestic white mantón de Manila [embroidered shawl]. The Orquesta Nacional de España, conducted by David Afkham, played Amorosa (Ala baita) by Basque composer Jesús Guridi, the sixth number out of ten Basque melodies. The melancholy music accompanied the movements and gestures of pain of the dancer in this metaphor about arising from the ashes.

Rubén Olmo: “Despite it all, it has been a good year for the Ballet Nacional de España”

08/10/2020

With an eye to rehearsals and the preproduction of the 2021 premieres, plus the preparation of the Invocación tours to start in October, the director of the Ballet Nacional de España, Rubén Olmo, goes over his first season as head of the company, cut short by Covid-19.

Rubén Olmo, new BNE director

18/09/2019

On 1 September dancer and choreographer Rubén Olmo (Seville, 1980) became director of the Ballet Nacional de España.