From Broadway to Mexico City

Over the years we have seen a number of Broadway shows here in Mexico City.  Several of those productions have been at "Teatro Insurgentes", one of the city's most famous theaters.  We have seen "The Man of La Mancha", "Cabaret" and "The Phantom of the Opera" there.

Last weekend we saw a preview performance of the latest show to be presented at "Teatro Insurgentes"... "Buenavista Social Club".  An acquaintance of ours had tickets, but was unable to use them.  He asked us if we would be interested in going, and we said yes.

The Buenavista Social Club was a musical venue in Havana, Cuba, in the 1940s and 1950s where musicians would gather to perform the popular forms of music of that era such as "son", "bolero" and "danzón".   The club closed its doors after the Cuban Revolution of 1959.  Decades later, record producers came to Cuba and reunited the musicians to record an album of music from that "Golden Age of Cuban Music".  The record became an international smash hit which won a Grammy Award in 1998;

The story of how the musicians were reunited was made into a musical show which opened on Broadway in 2025.  It was the first Broadway show in which the songs were all performed in the original Spanish.  It was a success, and was nominated for eleven Tony Awards.  The cast album won another Grammy Award.  This is the first production of to be performed outside of the United States and next year it will open in London.

The story switches back and forth between the 1950s and the 1990s, and deals with the efforts to reunite the musicians, particularly the reluctant singer Omara Portuondo.  The plot is thin, but the music is fantastic.  It was a thoroughly enjoyable show.

Of course, photography of the show is not allowed.  However, Alejandro was able to film a bit at the end as the performers took their final bows.