Operating with Castro's blessing, Havana's legendary Tropicana goes on tour
Paula Citron. Special to The Globe and Mail. Thursday, June 8, 2000
Havana -- The lights dim in the lush garden of the fabled Tropicana nightclub in Havana. Suddenly, there is a collective gasp from the audience as high above in a tree, we see the illumination of a beautiful show girl dressed like an exotic bird. This gorgeous image is followed by another, and
yet another, as trees all over the garden light up, revealing a bevy of beauties, each more fanciful than the last.
The show has begun, and during the next two hours, up to 250 artists, all in spectacular costumes, will perform song-and-dance numbers which reflect the Creole fusion that produced Cuba's vibrant culture.
Toronto's Hummingbird Centre, home to the National Ballet of Canada and the Canadian Opera Company, is no tropical paradise under normal circumstances. However, this week is an exception. The occasion is a three-day appearance -- starting tonight -- of the Tropicana's touring company. In keeping
with the event, the stage was transformed into a sultry garden by the Tropicana's artistic director and chief choreographer, Santiago Alfonso Fernandez.
The Globe caught up with the energetic 60-year-old at the Hummingbird recently when he was in town to check out the venue.
"The dancers, singers and musicians are the heart and soul of Tropicana," Alfonso says. "Our shows represent the best of song and dance, those integral elements of our island nation that are the spirit inside the word Cubana."
The touring company has only a quarter of the Havana complement of stars, but the show itself, La Gloria Eres Tu (You are the Glory), is a faithful copy of the extravaganza currently playing in Cuba. In fact, the Toronto engagement also features Leticia Herrera, considered the greatest cabaret
singer on the island today.
The Tropicana has an interesting history. Arguably one of the most famous nightclubs in the world, it is set in the beautiful garden of a suburban estate. From the moment it opened in 1939, it was a hit, largely due to its spectacular shows staged in a lush outdoor setting. Over the next two
decades, the greatest names in show business appeared there, including Josephine Baker, Xavier Cugat, Nat King Cole and Carmen Miranda. In 1952, a stunning overhead roof called the Crystal Arches was constructed on the property to allow the show to go on even in inclement weather.
Perhaps the strangest part of the Tropicana story is that it was allowed to continue operating after the Communist revolution in 1959.
"The Tropicana was a symbol of Cuban culture," Alfonso explains. "Some of the country's greatest singers, dancers, composers and choreographers had worked there, and to take away the Tropicana would have been to deny their artistry. The government's economic support allows us to
concentrate on being creative, and presenting a true panorama of the rich rhythms of this little island. We don't have to pander to rich owners who want to make money at any cost.
"Castro understood that the Tropicana belonged to the Cuban people. In fact, it was only after the revolution that the Tropicana became truly democratic and very dark skinned Negrito people were allowed to join the cast."
It takes more than a year to create a Tropicana show, and each production runs as long as there's a demand. For example, the current show La Gloria Eres Tu is in its fourth triumphant year.
Alfonso's unique contribution has been to produce shows that depict the way musical cultures have influenced each other. Thus, La Gloria Eres Tu contains an homage to Brazil, as well as music by composers from other Latin cultures. The diverse numbers include: one that recalls old-fashioned
street vendors; the music of classical Cuban composer Ernesto Lecuona set around ballroom dancing; a history of danzon, the national dance of Cuba, a display of son music and dance (the ancestor of salsa); an Afro-Cuban sequence inspired by West African rituals; and a modern jazz ballet set to the
complex rhythms of Cuban-American composer Mario Bauza.
Alfonso's favourite is the intimate number Bésame Mucho (Kiss Me Many Times), which depicts the changing moods of love. The famous 1942 song was written by Mexican composer Consuelo Velazquez who chose as her rhythm, the bolero, which is native to Cuba.
In the forties, the Tropicana shows were more primitive and native in tone. That changed in the fifties, when Rodney (Roderico Neyra) took over as artistic director. "He began to build the extravaganzas that we know today," says Alfonso, "the themed shows where the numbers flow
one into the other like a kaleidoscope with no interruption by an emcee or host. There are no animal acts, stand-up comics, or nudity in our shows. He turned the Tropicana into a class act."
The performers, the highest paid in Cuba, put in 12-hour days. Beginning at one in the afternoon, they take company classes (ballet, modern and folk dance), and then rehearse elements of the show to keep it fresh before taking part in the performance itself.
The Tropicana's La Gloria Eres Tu runs through Saturday at the Hummingbird Centre. |