Paco León is Manolo in a sixties Madrid.
Year 1961. Madrid was black and white for the vast majority of residents. But for others Madrid shone in technicolor, not even the nights that seemed eternal were dyed black. That was the Madrid that the actress enjoyed Ava Gardner, that of the parties until dawn, the saraos, the dance, the La Menorquina cupcakes, the San Ginés churros and the good mojama. A Madrid that now Paco León and Ana R. Costa recreate in their series, Arde Madrid (Movistar+), starring himself Paco Leon, Inma Cuesta and Anna Castillo as the servants of a cheeky Ava, whom she brings to life Debi Mazar.
Watching the series we discover Ava's Madrid which will soon be an official route offered by the city council with all those places that the actress stepped on in her castiza time. "We have included the Intercontinental Hotel, which was not called that before, and it is a great hotel with the best brunch in Madrid, without a doubt, I know that I have tried them all”, says the actor and director. "There is San Ginés –we should do a churros route–, the mythical tablaos that are still the same as in the 60s and are still a meeting point for the best flamenco singers. As a top I think he is The Moorish which also has a haute cuisine, but also Rose village", he continues. "There is La Menorquina, where Ava spent many hours and people don't know about her because they paint her as drunk, but she also loved eating cakes"; He laughs. Of course, the mythical Chicote and "also the Oliver that no longer exists".
But taking advantage of the premiere of the series, what we want to discover now is the Madrid of Paco León, know where he goes to burn the city.
Ava Gardner, Lola Flores, the Duchess of Alba, Carmen Sevilla… what a party.
Your first memory of Madrid. "I came as a child to visit, and what I remember was the zoo , because there is no zoo in Seville and it was the most exotic thing in Madrid. The amusement park".
Why did you come to Madrid? "It was normal for people from the provinces to come to the capital to find life, but that was not my case. I had a job in Seville as an actor, in theater, television and dancing. My first jump was to Barcelona where I did Moncloa, tell me. Then I came to Madrid with the Centro Dramático Nacional, I returned to Barcelona with Homo Zapping and I came to Madrid to do Aida and I stayed".
Where did you live when you arrived? " I have always lived for Latin. A little bit by Calle Segovia, Calle Toledo and La Paloma, Las Vistillas. In Madrid each neighborhood is a world, a different city. I like that Latina has that mixture of contact with Lavapiés, Ópera, the center. Very authentic people, always, very traditional. In kiki I paid tribute to the neighborhood portraying those parties of La Paloma, the verbena".
Paco León and Anna R. Costa, creators of the series.
What do you miss when you are away for a long time? "They always ask me from Seville, but from Madrid... Maybe energy, A lot of things happen here, people are really looking forward to it. Tired, it's very exhausting, but it never bores you."
"In Arde Madrid we portray that Madrid, which has always been a party capital, a place to go out. Just in a recent survey Madrid appeared as the funniest city in the world. I find it exciting, we don't notice it because we live here, but Madrid literally doesn't sleep: at any time you can find a place to have a good time without much posturing, very naturally. In the series we portray that party of the 60s, that Madrid dolce vita unknown to many people. Then with the 80s, the move. And even today it is a tourist destination to have fun. Madrid is a very open and very enjoyable city. Here there is no such thing as "everything is closed", but in the rest of the world it is not like that".
Where do you burn the night of Madrid? " The truth is that I haven't been very outgoing ever. And if I've gone out I don't remember the names of the places. In any case, there is a route, which seems to me to be remarkable, and that is the vermouth route, bars to snack on in my neighbourhood, for example. Since the Muniz, I have it close to home, to the places of Cascorro, Las Vistillas. At night, I don't know, maybe places like Jose Alfredo either boy, that have like a decadent glamor and that still have a lot of flavor for the first glass.
Inma Cuesta and Anna Castillo are Ava Gardner's servants.
Where would they put a plaque in Madrid: 'Paco León spent a lot of time here'? "In Santa Ana Square. I start to walk aimlessly and I appear there; and I spend most of my time there, on the terraces, or in Ana la Santa, which I use as a natural office, or in the Spanish Theater, or in the gym that is close by. It's the area where I move the most."
A film that portrays Madrid well. I remember that my first contacts with Madrid were also through cinema. What Women at the edge of a nervous attack, of Almodóvar, I discovered those summers in Madrid with the windows wide open. Those summers in Madrid that I also portrayed in Kiki.
Any place in the city where you go to get inspired? "Palace both towards the Opera and the Royal Palace, Las Vistillas, the Almudena... but also the scoundrel on the other side of the Upper Lavapiés –as they call it now, I'm a super fan of the term–, it has a lot of life".
Are you more of Rastro or the Golden Mile? El Rastro, because it catches me closer too.
The Retreat or Country House? Withdrawal.
Brunch or vermouth? of vermouth.
Cane or vermouth? I am a vermouth.
Rehearsing in Ava's living room.
Cooked or ins and outs and chicken? Cooked, cooked. I like it a lot the Max, next to Toledo Street. Very affordable. There are the classic Malacatín, Bola… but I prefer something more familiar.
Your favorite Madrid dish (it's worth the cane). The ear, which may seem disgusting, but if they make it rich it is exquisite. In the Muñiz they play it very well, but there are many places, really.
The last restaurant you have discovered. I am also enjoying this awakening of Upper Lavapiés, one of the last restaurants in the area is Toga, wonderful, it has a star dish that is noodles with raw tuna tacos that is impressive, to dream of them.
Manolo and Ana Mari burning Madrid.
Are you already staying in Madrid? I think so, as a headquarters, without a doubt
What would you bring from Seville? The breakfasts, because in Seville there is a toast culture that is not here. For them to put a good ham on toast is complicated, or they put the toast on the grill. Here it is the cold baton, the tortilla skewer, the sun and shade, much more Castilian.