Two of La Presy's students, shining on their own, remember their friend and teacher

COURTESY PHOTO: LARA BELLO

LARA BELLO

COURTESY PHOTO: PATRICIA GUERRERO

PATRICIA GUERRERO

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• Rediscovering La Presy, San Antonio's gift to flamenco

"Thank you Presy for being part of my dancing and my learning," wrote Patricia Guerrero days after La Presy's death. "Thanks for your knowledge and your advice. Even though I will never receive that phone call you always made, you will always be with me and I will always remember you. So long, my maestra."

"If you ask Patricia about La Presy, she'll start crying," said singer-scholar Juan Pinilla. "She's a phenomenal dancer who does everything well: clásico, flamenco… but always in an artful way," said Manolete.

Patricia Guerrero, now one of Spain's top young bailaoras, met La Presy at a key formative time in her life.

"With her I started to dance with guitar and cante, and to better understand flamenco in general," said Guerrero. "I was a young kid, ages 9 to 11, so it was a time of learning, learning, and learning."

When Guerrero, a precocious dancer, began to establish herself nationally, La Presy kept in touch with her.

"She always called me before an important show to wish me well," Guerrero said. "Unfortunately, I'll never receive those calls again."

The Ballet Flamenco Andaluz will be touring the U.S. in March, and "of course, I'd love to perform at La Presy's birthplace."

It would be a dream for La Presy's students, for Manolete (who also would like to perform in SA), and to the local flamenco scene — those who knew La Presy, and those who should discover her.

"I was a child, but I never forgot her teachings and advice," said Guerrero. "In any career, all stages of learning are important, and what I learned with La Presy was so important. I'll always remember her."

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