No one better than Juan Roca, founder and artistic director of Havanafama Theatrical Company, to talk about his theater company.
I think it is necessary to give a little history. How and where did the idea of Havanafama come about?
The idea of creating the Havanafana theater company arose in Los Angeles, California, in 1984. And this was due to the need, so to speak, to have a theater company that would speak and show Cuban customs and folklore, since at that time there were only two recognized theater groups, Sinergia, which was more inclined to the Mexican community, and the Bilingual Arts Foundation, which was more directed towards the Cuban community. theater classic. There was a large Cuban community that was eager to have a theater group that represented them. The shows we presented at the Gallery Theater in Hollywood brought together more than 250 people at each presentation.
From the name, some pictures and videos, I gather that the initial purpose was to create shows in the style of Tropicana and Broadway. Was that the original idea in Los Angeles, California?
Likewise, the company’s first shows were in the style of Broadway and Tropicana, they were shows like Joy of livingwith music by Mene Sols; Cuba dances y Tropicana the Golden Agewritten by Raúl de Cárdenas, one of the founders of Havanafama.
When did you start doing independent theatre?
In fact, already Tropicana the Golden Age y Salsa in the solariumwritten by Rosa Sánchez and Ofelia Fox, mark the beginning of authorial theatre, as you call it, and that happened in the years 1985 and 1986.
We cannot talk about Havanafama without mentioning the actor Roberto Antnoo, who was always by your side until his death. Tell us about his contribution to the consolidation of Havanafama.
Roberto was one of the strongest and most important pillars of our company. At his side we were able to create Havanafama in a city where, theatrically speaking, only the strongest survive. Roberto was not only a driving force behind all of this, but he also contributed greatly as an actor and playwright. His works were applauded on different stages in Los Angeles and, very importantly, his work as an actor put Havanafama on the map of the great theater companies in Los Angeles, when we were selected as the best of the week in an important cultural newspaper, LA Weekly. This tabloid could put you on the theatrical map or make the company disappear.
After several years in Los Angeles, you decided to settle in Miami and brought Havanafama with you. What made you come to South Florida, knowing that it meant a new beginning?
Havanafama was a very successful company in Los Angeles, it is remembered with respect and nostalgia by those who attended our performances. There, it also founded the educational and street theater sponsored by the Center for Disease Control. When I began to direct a radio program called The Story of a Song, I had to travel constantly to Miami, where the program was recorded, which earned me a nomination for the Billboard Awards. My son was very small and I didn’t like him being on a plane so much, so I decided to move to Miami and relocate Havanafama to this city. That radio program, which I remember with great satisfaction, gave me the opportunity to direct great acting stars such as Rosa Felipe, Gabriel Casanova, Elodia Rigo Vega, Ada Beja and Griselda Noguera.
Of everything you did in Los Angeles, what do you remember with the greatest satisfaction?
The creation of my first theater, Havanafama, in the heart of Hollywood. There I presented works by my dear friend Raúl de Cárdenas, such as Untamed poppythe political drama Shadows are not forgotten, about the life of Alberto Fibla in the Cuban political prison, The Little Girls of La Sageceraa work that gave us the opportunity to present Hispanic theatre for the first time in the city of Las Vegas. Never before, in this great city of shows, had a play been presented in Spanish.
What was the work that made you known in Miami?
The first work we put on here in Miami was The Capotes are leavingby Raúl de Cárdenas at the now defunct Roxy Theatre.
In Miami, you opened a theater on SW 6th Street, then on 10th Avenue, and you’ve been operating for several years now on 40th, Bird Road. Each theater is an effort to recondition and create a welcoming space for theater. Tell us about that carpentry work that has nothing (or maybe it does) to do with theater itself..
(Laughs) In the theater I have learned to be a carpenter, an electrician, a seamstress, a painter, a floor cleaner, etc. I think that if I had not learned all those trades, I would not have been able to do it. But I knew that if I did not have my own space I could not maintain a continuous schedule as we have been doing for more than 20 years. In addition, I have been able to do the theater that I like and enjoy without any kind of limits. I am a free person, I do not like barriers of any kind, that is why I left my country (Cuba) for Mariel many years ago.
You can’t talk about Havanafama without mentioning the Monologue Festival One Voice Theatrewhich you organize annually. Tell us about its origin and its open theater format.
The monologue festival has been and will be one of the company’s oldest events. We have maintained it against all odds, sometimes with many performances, other times with fewer, but it has been there for 22 years, which is easy to say, but it hasn’t been, and you have been part of all the organization that this entails. But I have always believed that there are many actors who, due to production problems, don’t have a place to exhibit their work, and that is why every February Havanafama opens its space free of charge to all those who want to bring their stage work.
_What works have you felt most satisfied with as a director or producer since you’ve been in Miami?
There are three emblematic works for Havanafama. BernardI am pouring myself into The House of Bernarda Alba by Federico Garca Lorca. The orgy of Enrique Buena Ventura, these two have been awarded on many occasions in different places inside and outside the United States. And He public, which has only won one award, but it was always Roberto Antnoo’s favourite work. And that was my greatest award.
_How are you going to celebrate 40 years of Havanafama?
Well, we won’t have a celebration, it’s just a family reunion, it’s time to hug each other and say we’ve done it, all our effort has been rewarded with the applause and respect of our public, not only here in Miami, but also in Los Angeles, Hollywood, Las Vegas, Massachusetts, Merida, Yucatan, Orlando, the Dominican Republic. In addition, we will pay tribute to two of the greats who are no longer with us, Adela Prado and Roberto Antunoo.