The Bushnell, Hartford, CT
through June 24, 2018
by Janice Hanson
 |
| Photo by Matthew Murphy |
“On Your Feet” explodes with music
and lighting effects. The show is pure entertainment with a uniformly
strong cast of actors, singers, dancers and a band that includes five
members of the Miami Sound Machine—the band started by Emilio
Estefan in 1975. On the surface, the story is about how Emilio
Estefan met Gloria Fajardo, whom he later married, and how the duo
became pivotal in introducing the Latin sound to the world. The plot
is bland, but with the hot salsa and Cuban music and dance, it really
doesn’t matter.
There are sub-themes in the story, such
as the importance of family and the tension of Gloria’s
relationship with her mother and grandmother, but this is no feminist
story. There’s also a theme of the marginalization of music that
the “tastemakers” deem as not of interest to mainstream
Americans. When Emilio points to himself and says “This is what an
American looks like,” the audience cheered.
The sub-title is “The Emilio &
Gloria Estefan Broadway Musical” and there is no doubt as to who,
in the relationship, comes first. This is almost more of Emilio’s
story than Gloria’s, and though they are portrayed as a couple
connected by love, the marriage appears to be of unequal equals.
The charismatic leads are Christie
Prades (Gloria) and Mauricio Martinez (Emilio) who have outstanding
voices and create ethereal harmonies. Doreen Montalvo (Gloria’s
mother) is a spitfire and Debra Cardona (Abuela) provides familial
love and a fair share of comedy. Added to the outstanding ensemble of
singers/dancers, are young performers portraying child Gloria and
young Emilio (Gloria and Emilio’s son). The night I saw the show,
young Jordan Vergara, whom the playbill lists as having been a salsa
dancer since he was 4 years old, stole the scenes in which he was the
dancing bar-mitzvah boy—a reference to how the band played any gig
they could get in order to get their music heard.
While the story is not particularly
original, the music had members of the audience “on their feet”
as well. This is a joyous show with heart and energy. It’s a great
way to start the summer with a Latin beat and music so hot it
sizzles.
