Irina Pino’s Diary

Do people actually celebrate Christmas in Cuba? This is a tough question and every Cuban will likely have their own story to tell and share about the season.

There’s a beautiful Havana out there. It’s the Havana sold to tourists, the one that appears on postcards, with startling architectural treasures, an abundance of hotels, beaches, restaurants and freshly-restored vintage American cars.

In the 1980s, when I lived in Vedado, I met a number of prostitutes. Pepe, a gay friend of mine, would take me to their homes so I could trade items of clothing with them, which was a common practice at the time.

When I was young, I would often meet up with my friends to have tea and share stories having to do with the size of men’s penises. It was a way to have fun and share anecdotes.

Documenting the intensity of real life is a way of transforming our experiences through art. There are many ways to achieve an interesting documentary, a genre that, despite being less popular than fiction, has many avid followers, myself included.

Los poemas de Reina María Rodríguez, dejan constancia de una vida plena dentro de la poesía, vista a través de unos ojos que enmarcan un panorama cambiante por décadas en una isla sui géneris.

While at Havana’s Mella Theater, listening to the marvelous songs from Jesus Christ Superstar, Hair and Mamma Mia during Broadway Rox, a show staged by Entertainment Nederlander Worldwide, the history of Cuban musicals – that priceless legacy of our music-loving culture – came to mind.

Over the past few days, I’ve had the opportunity to attend several concerts held as part of the Les Voix Humaines, a festival conceived by Cuban maestro Leo Brouwer in close collaboration with Isabelle Hernandez, who produced and coordinated the event.

Can one dance to classical music? That was the question posed by Maestro Leo Brower, director of the Les Voix Humaines Festival, to promote the Havana Classical Rave performance held at Havana’s Fabrica de Arte Cubano days ago.

Last Sunday, Cuban singer Augusto Enriquez shared the stage with the Canadian jazz band The Back Alley Big Band for a concert titled “Frank Sinatra Meets Benny More”, held at Havana’s Karl Marx Theater. The concert was part of the ongoing Les Voix Humaines festival.