Jaleo Arte Flamenco

Audiences of all ages can expect a colorful, fun, culture experience. Jaleo Arte Flamenco is available for educational type performances, parties, and theater productions including Operas (Zarzuelas).

The vitality of this dance ensemble projects a performance enriched with excitement, power and flawlessness. The authentic delivery of various Spanish Dance forms truly adds a variety to their repertoire, providing the perfect entertainment for a unique event.

Nelson Sitton Carrillo was born and raised in Panama City, Panama. He comes from a long line of Latin Dancers and has studied Spanish Dance extensively with Dame Marina Keet at the George Washington University and his repertoire includes all four types of Spanish Dance - - Regional/Folk, Classical/Escuela Bolera, Noeclassical, and Flamenco. He has also studied Flamenco with Ciro, Conchita del Mar, Omayra Amaya, Antonio Vargas, Javier Cruz, Manolo Rivera, La Tati, Luis Montero, La Conja, Marina Lorca, Vida Peral, Gloria de Jerez and others. Nelson has performed in New York, Philadelphia, Maryland, North Carolina, and throughout the Washington Metropolitan area as a principal dancer with the Spanish Dance Theater of the Spanish Dance Society, Washington, D.C. Under the auspices of the Embassy of Spain, he appeared in a performance with the famed singer, Jose Carrera. As a member of the Spanish Dance Theater, Nelson has also appeared at the Kennedy Center Terrace Theater, the American Museum of Natural History in New York City, the Julliard School, and the Baird Auditorium of the Smithsonian Institution. After moving to Chicago in 1997, he founded his dance company “Jaleo Arte Flamenco” with his dance partner Analisa Leppanen. Nelson has appeared as guest artist at the Harold Washington Library Auditorium in a performance with Teresa y Los Preferidos and with Dance-Detour (Chicago’s first professional mixed-abilities dance company), he has also appeared as guest artist at the South Shore Cultural Center in a fusion percussive dance (Connecting the Rhythm) with M.A.D.D. Rhythm Lives and at the Museum of Contemporary Art in a percussive performance (Ritmo – The Latin Beat) with the Chicago Human Rhythm Project. Once moving back to the Washington, DC Metropolitan Area, Nelson spent three months in Sevilla, Spain where he studied Flamenco extensively with Juan de los Reyes and Juan Polvillo. In March of 2007, Nelson danced and acted in Bizet’s Carmen, The Tragedy of Don Jose, which was one of The In Series’ Opera in The City directed by Artistic Director, Carla Hubner. In October of 2007 and September of 2012, Nelson danced and acted in Mozart’s Don Giovanni with The Washington National Opera, which was directed by Placido Domingo. In April of 2018, Nelson danced and acted in Rossini’s The Barber of Seville with the Washington National Opera. Nelson is presently performing with other Flamenco dancers in his dance company “Jaleo Arte Flamenco.”