Elba Hevia y Vaca

Artistic/Executive Director and Founder of Pasión y Arte

Born in La Paz, Bolivia, Elba Hevia y Vaca is a creative artist and visionary bringing the

Flamenco art form to Philadelphia for over 20 years. She began her study of classical Spanish

dance at the age of five. She later studied and danced professionally with the Ana Martinez

Flamenco Dance Company in D.C., and danced with Washington’s Raquel Peña Spanish Dance

Company, appearing as a soloist at various venues throughout the U.S. In Philadelphia she

continued her study of modern dance, jazz, and contact improvisation from various Philadelphia

artists. She continues her dance studies and research yearly in Sevilla, submerging herself with

master dancers, musicians and singers of the art form. In 2000, Hevia y Vaca founded Pasión y

Arte (PyA) and has developed it into Philadelphia’s premier contemporary Flamenco dance

company. She founded it out of a strong and intensely personal conviction that highly-stylized

traditional Spanish flamenco dance is a perfect vessel to empower women. These values have

been reflected in her nine original, critically acclaimed evening length works she has created for

PyA and in the numerous grants, fellowships and accolades awarded to Hevia y Vaca and PyA

under her direction. These works push the boundaries of the Flamenco art form through

experimentation with site-specific choreography, and many are the product of collaborations

with international flamenco stars and renowned post-modern dancers. She also founded a

conservatory, launched two citywide Flamenco festivals and is a Senior Adjunct at Franklyn and

Marshal, Adjunct. In 2018 she was nominated for the prestigious Pew Fellowship by Pew

Center for the Arts and Heritage.