A musical about the Cuban artists behind “Buena Vista Social Club,” an internationally recognized album featuring the country’s most popular musical styles, will open on Broadway next year.
Producers Orin Wolf, John Stiles and Barbara Broccoli announced the new musical, also called “Buena Vista Social Club,” Monday morning. Preliminary performances begin Feb. 21, with production set to begin March 19 at the Gerald Schoenfeld Theater.
“It has been an honor to help develop Buena Vista Social Club into a new musical alongside Marco Ramirez, Saheem Ali, Patricia Delgado, Justin Peck and David Yazbek — all artists at the top of their game,” Wolf said. He also recounted the group’s joint travels to Cuba, “getting to know the incredible artists who created the album for our Off-Broadway premiere,” and promised that “Broadway audiences coming with fresh ears will be amazed when Buena Vista Social Club comes to life on stage.”
In collaboration with Marco Ramirez’s “The Royale” book and directed by Sahim Ali, the upcoming musical will feature an ensemble cast, including a band of Afro-Cuban musicians who will help portray the true story of the artists who recorded “Buena Vista Social Club” in 1997. The play premiered Off-Broadway at the Atlantic Theater Company late last year.
The choreography will be overseen by Patricia Delgado and Tony Award winner Justin Peck (“Illinois,” Steven Spielberg’s “West Side Story”) and the musical will be led by Tony Award winners David Yazbek (“The Band’s Visit”) and Dean Sharrino.
The Broadway cast includes Natalie Venetia Belcon (O'Mara), Julio Monge (Combay), Mel Simi (Abraham), Genardo Batista Sterling (Robin), Issa Antonetti (Young O'Mara), Davon Moody (Young Compbay), Wesley Wray (Young Abraham), Leonardo Reyna (Young Robin), Renicito Avich (Eliadis), Ashley De La Rosa (Young Heidi), Angelica Belliard, Carlos Vallo, Hector Juan Maisonet, Ilda Mason, Marelis Molina, Sofia Ramos. Additional casting will be announced at a later date.
Tickets are on sale now at http://www.buenavistamusical.com.
“I first heard Buena Vista Social Club when I was a precocious young man growing up in Nairobi, listening to the original album from my father’s extensive record collection,” Ali added. “Even though we spoke Swahili, not Spanish, I could still remember the lyrics in my broken accent. I felt connected to the beautiful songs that captured the spirit of a distant culture. Decades later, I am thrilled to join Oren, Marco and the entire creative team on the journey to bring this unique and extraordinary musical to Broadway.”
“In 1968, my grandfather left Cuba and got a job washing dishes just a block away from the Schoenfeld Theater,” Ramirez said. “Nearly 60 years later, we will be hearing his favorite songs there, alongside some of the best artists — and people — I’ve ever met. I’m humbled by the opportunity to forge connections between two of the most iconic musical islands in the world — Cuba and Manhattan.”
