Fiesta on the Hudson

Formerly "Peruvian Ballet Representative to the World,” Talia represented Peru in the most prestigious ballet competitions around the globe. Talía started dancing at the age of three, becoming the youngest soloist to join the National Ballet of Peru at age 14. She attended the prestigious School of American Ballet and graduated from the William Esper Studio, where she studied acting under Bill Esper. Talia’s acting, dancing and choreography have been featured in numerous films, TV shows, commercials and other productions, including Fleishman is in Trouble, The Godfather of Harlem, Falling in Rhythm, Summer of Sam and Tango Finish. She has trained professional dancers in partner dancing, including Broadway dancers for choreographer Christopher Gattelli. Talia has also managed numerous iconic dance studios in NYC and has taught master classes at BDC, Lincoln Center, Columbia University, NYU. She has been featured on NBC’s The Today Show with Patrick Swayze, Tiki Barber, Marc Anthony, Pitbull, The New York Times, ABC’s Good Morning America, CBS, Univision, Telemundo, and celebrated as “The Woman of Salsa” by Latina Magazine.

She is the producer of Latin Mondays at Taj celebrating 18 years, Sunset Salsa with Talia, Bryant Park Dance Party & Midtown Dance, and a member of the International Dance Council & Board Director of the Unspoken Smiles Foundation helping children at risk help develop healthy habits for life & Board Member of Ballroom Basix USA providing school children physical, social, emotional and cultural engagement through dance serving more than 20,000 school children in over a hundred NYC schools.

Emerging from New York City, under the leadership of Luis Córdoba, Grupo Tahona is a dynamic ensemble known for its original salsa compositions including hits like "Tahona," "Joe Pa Ti," "Yroco," "Canconito," and "Joey," brought to life under the musical direction of José Mangual Jr. and Luis Cordoba. In 2022, their innovative sound earned them a nomination for the prestigious Premios Cristo Rey as the best Salsa group in Colombia, marking them as influential contributors to the global salsa music scene.

José Mangual Jr. is an American Salsa percussionist of Puerto Rican Descent, singer and composer best known for his recordings with Willie Colón and Héctor Lavoe during the 1960s and 1970s salsa boom in New York. He is the son of the legendary bongo musician, José Mangual, Sr., aka "Buyú" and brother of Luis Mangual who is also a well-known Salsa percussionist. Both were born and raised in East Harlem. 

In the 1960s Willie Colón hired Mangual to play bongos and sing background vocals for Hector Lavoe in Willie Colon's orchestra and played bongo and cowbell on Willie Colon and Hector Lavoe's Cosa Nuestra album, the first album of Colon's to go gold. In 1974 Mangual produced and recorded José Mangual & Carlos "Patato" Valdez" – Understanding Latin Rhythms Vol. 1, an instructional album on the New Jersey-based Latin Percussion label owned by Martin Cohen., His father, José Mangual Sr. featured on the bongos, Patato Valdéz on the conga, Bobby Rodríguez on bass and Manny Oquendo on the timbales. In 1975 he played bongo on Hector Lavoe's album La Voz and later became Lavoe's musical director. In 1977 Mangual started the record label, True Ventures Inc. The first album A Tribute to Chano Pozo featured "Campanero" and "Cuero Na' Ma" – which has been covered by numerous artists. He played bongos, maracas and chorus ensemble on Ruben Baldes and Willie Colon's LPs Metiendo Mano and Siembra. In the early 1980s he signed with Velvet Records, and increased popularity in Latin America, Europe and Asian markets. 

Mangual's talent as a percussionist, singer, composer, and musical director led him to record with artists including Ray Barretto, Rubén Blades, Herb Alpert, Dizzy Gillespie, David Byrne, Celia Cruz, Juan Luis Guerra, Ramon Orlando, Mario Bauza, The Fania All-Stars, Junior Gonzalez, Ismael Miranda, Louie Ramirez Mongo Santamaria, vocals and for the soundtrack for the movie El Cantante, starring Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez. From 1998 to 2012 Mangual formed and recorded with a group he founded called Son Boricua with Jimmy Sabater. In 1998 he won the ACE Award for as best new Latin release for the LP Son Boricua along with Jimmy Sabater who sang lead vocal on the album.