Despite growing up relatively poor in his home country of Cuba, Eric Turro Martinez has fond memories of his childhood. “In my times in the late 60s, growing up was simply amazing,” he says. “The town was full of music and dance, [so we were] infected with [it] as little kids.”
Turro Martinez’s enthusiasm for traditional Cuban dance is as obvious and pronounced as the rolling ‘R’ in rumba, which he says with the passion that only a true Cuban can. “I lived in Cuba for 34 years,” he explains.
It’s not surprising Turro Martinez grew up to become one of the leaders and champions of traditional Cuban dance around the world, having started as a boy. “I started dancing at nine years of age,” he says. “[I danced] with my uncle, my grandfather, my mother taught [us] to dance when we were kids.”
Dance Buena Vista will be held at The Palms at Crown on Saturday March 26. For tickets, head here.
Turro Martinez’s passion for music and dance grew as he did. “I danced with all my friends at all the parties,” he continues. “The conga was a cultural event since I was a teenager.”
“In Cuba, we dance like happy people 24/7,” he explains. “We make a party with a piece of metal, or sometimes two spoons and a frypan, and we make rumba.”
Turro Martinez says that music and dance is a part of Cuban’s daily life. “[It] is the expression of the people,” he says. “It’s the way we express ourselves and our feelings.”
Turro Martinez was propelled from a street busker to the world stage in 1997, when he joined legendary music ensemble The Buena Vista Social Club in Havana as a dancer and MC.
The collection of the country’s finest musicians brought Cuban music of the 1950s and 60s to the world, becoming a global phenomenon, and winning the 1998 Grammy for Best Traditional Tropical Latin Album.
Though the band’s famed namesake closed in the 60s, in 1997 Turro Martinez hosted musicians from the band, among others, at another Havana club every Sunday for seven years.
Drawing from his multiple world tours and weekly hosting duties, Turro Martinez has now created the stage show Dance Buena Vista. “[The show] is my experience with all these layers,” he says. “The last 27 years I’ve seen them touring and shared the life.”
Turro Martinez directs, choreographs and narrates the show, which is also a tribute to the members of the band who have passed away. “Suddenly, most of them are dying when working,” he says. “It’s a history of my life, my experience with the Buena Vista Social Club.
“The most important thing is to preserve the elegance and preserve the style of the music and dance: being a defender of Cuban music and dance,” adds Turro Martinez.
Turro Martinez is excited to bring his life to stage in front of an Australian audience, especially as he’s been calling us home for the last 18 years. “I love it so much,” he says. “I’ve been living in Australia since 2009.”
The importance of music is also highlighted in the stage show, with a seven-piece band, three singers accompanying the energetic dancers. “The music is taken from the 1950s and is absolutely amazing,” says Martinez.
Dance Buena Vista will be held at The Palms at Crown on Saturday March 26. For tickets, head here.
