Pasaje de Hiedra
Peter Mole – Guitarist, Composer
From Victoria to Corner Brook, and in every major venue in Vancouver, including the Queen Elizabeth Theatre, the Chan Centre and main stage at the Vancouver Folk Festival, Peter Mole has been performing flamenco guitar for more than 30 years. In 1994 he introduced flamenco to the legendary Kino Cafe in Vancouver where he has performed weekly shows (up to five nights a week) until the pandemic and the closure of the venue. He currently enjoys performing with the local vibrant flamenco community including his group Calle Verde. Peter is currently working on a solo album funded by the Canada Council for the Arts which will be released this summer and a dance film with Calle Verde that is also funded by the Canada Council for the Arts.
Jake Lee “Chinito” – Singer, Guitarist
Jake Lee began training as a guitar accompanist for dancers in 1997 under Harry Owen and Veronica Maguire in Victoria, BC. Drawing influence from both traditional and modern sources, Jake has been a frequent collaborator with many artists including Rueda, Monique Salez, Alma de España, Peña Flamenca, LaLuna Flamenco, Mozaico Flamenco and Kasandra Flamenco. This the first collaboration with Vancouver’s Pasaje de Hiedra. Performing in Victoria, Vancouver, and Calgary, he has been a participant in the Victoria Flamenco Festival since 2013. In addition to playing flamenco guitar, Jake is known as singer and most recently was featured in “The Letter,” a flamenco video presented at the Victoria Flamenco Festival 2022. He has also performed in several recent editions of the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival. Jake is also a luthier and producer.
Christine Arzoumanian “TinTin” – Dancer
Christine was born in Tehran, Iran, of Armenian heritage, and started dancing at the age of five in classical ballet and traditional Armenian dance. After a break of many years, she returned in 2005 when she discovered flamenco. For the next seven years, she traveled to Spain three months a year to dedicate all her energy and focus into its study. Christine started performing weekly in 2008, at various venues in Toronto, and has also performed in Jerez, Spain and Yerevan, Armenia. She recently participated in the recent 2022 Vancouver International Flamenco Festival, and the Al Mozaico Sunday Salon Series in Vancouver with Calle Verde. Christine fell in love with flamenco for its history, its purity, its representation as an outlet for emotional expression, and its unbelievable complexity. The challenge of trying to learn even a fraction of it adds to her respect for this enduring tradition.
Michelle Harding – Dancer
Since she began performing in 2003, Michelle has become one of Vancouver’s respected dancers, known for her improvisational instinct and engaging presence. She is also a teacher and choreographer. Always interested in the processes of collaboration and experimentation, she has worked with many artists from within and outside the usual scope of the form ranging from jazz to soul to Persian and Asian music fusions. Within the flamenco genre, she is proud to have collaborated with the Raices y Alas Flamenco Project (Vancouver), Pajaro Negro (New York) and Miguel Cañas (Madrid). She currently performs most frequently with flamenco trio, Calle Verde. Michelle has performed at the Vancouver International Flamenco Festival, Victoria Flamenco Festival, Coetani Experimental Flamenco Festival (Greece) and Mozaico Flamenco Dance Theatre, to name a few. She has performed and taught from coast to coast in Canada, including a two-year residency project with the Festival of New Dance in St. John’s Newfoundland and a short residency at the Scotiabank Dance Centre in Vancouver.