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Washington, DC - GALA continues its spring series with Puro Tango, a panoramic view of the music and dance of pure passion and intensity that has captivated the world. Puro Tango is created and directed by Hugo Medrano, GALA’s co-founder and Producing Artistic Director, with musical direction by Alvaro Hagopián. The production features renowned tango singer Nelson Pino and José Lagreca on bandoneón from Uruguay, and dancers Gabriel Missé and Analía Centurión from Buenos Aires, Argentina. GALA actors Lucrecia Basualdo and Luis Simón will also appear in the production.
Puro Tango savors the sensuality and nostalgia of tango—its songs, music, dance and poetry—that has mesmerized the world for decades. The production spans the history of the musical genre from early in the 20th century with music from composers such as Carlos Gardel, Cátulo Castillo and Enrique Santos Discepolo, to modernist Eladia Blázquez, Aníbal Troilo, Edmundo Rivera and Astor Piazzolla. The poetry and sketches by Mario Battistella, Jorge Luis Borges, Mario Benedetti, and Homero Manzi bring to vivid life the ambience and characters in the ríoplatense region of Argentina and Uruguay. This is where tango music and dance emerged, as well as the love, longing and social criticism associated with this universal expression of passion and intensity.
Puro Tango will run April 19 through April 29, 2012, at GALA Theatre, 3333 14th Street, NW, Washington, DC 20010. Parking is available at a discounted rate in the Giant garage on Park Road, NW. Additional parking is available at the Target garage also on Park Road, between 14th and 16th Streets.
Performances are in Spanish with English surtitles on Thursdays through Saturdays at 8 pm, and Sundays at 3 pm. Press Night is Saturday, April 21, 2012 at 8 pm.
QuinTango will appear in a special performance on Wednesday, April 25 at 8 pm as part of GALA’s tango feast. QuinTango, D.C.’s only multiple WAMMIE-award winning tango group, packs the intimacy of cabaret, the virtuosity of the concert hall and the drama of tango into one unforgettable night. Special guests include New York actor/singer Chris Vásquez and Argentine Emmanuel Trifilio on bandoneón, among others.
ABOUT PURO TANGO
Featured in the cast is acclaimed tango singer Nelson Pino, who returns to the GALA stage after having appeared as the lead male singer in Agustín Lara~ Boleros & Blues in 2008. In Washington, he also has performed with the Pan American Symphony Orchestra at Lisner Auditorium. In Montevideo, Uruguay and Buenos Aires, Argentina, Mr. Pino has performed at some of the most popular tango clubs and theaters, including Teatro Solis, Teatro de la Alianza Uruguay-US, Fun Fun, and El Hacha. He has toured to Canada, Japan and the United States with several renowned tango orchestras, including those of Toto D’Amario, Antonio Cervino, Donato Raciatti and César Zagnoli.
Alvaro Hagopián is the pianist and musical director. He is the director of the ensemble Tango Trio, guest conductor of the Philharmonic Orchestra of Montevideo, and has been musical director of several other symphonic orchestras in Uruguay. Mr. Hagopián has toured internationally to Egypt, Austria, Brazil, Argentina and Peru. An Uruguayan-Armenian, he is also Director of Armenia Music at the AGBU Noobarian-Manoogian School in Montevideo and the Nersesian Educational Institute, helping to maintain the heritage of diaspora that is approaching 100 years in Uruguay.
Also appearing in Puro Tango are José Lagreca on bandoneón, who has played with most tango orchestras in Uruguay and has toured extensively; and tango dancers Gabriel Missé and Analía Centurión. Mr. Missé performed with the companies Tango x2, Forever Tango and the Miguel Angel Zotto Company. Ms. Centurión has performed in numerous tango productions, was a member of the Juan Carlos Copes Company, and directed Fusión Tango Company.
GALA company actors Lucrecia Basualdo and Luis Simón also appear in the production. Both actors were seen in Las aventuras de Don Quijote de La Mancha for GALita, directed by Mr. Medrano, and have also shared the stage in En busca de la sonrisa perdida; Valor, agravio y mujer; Te quiero, muñeca; La dama duende; and Los entremeses de Cervantes at GALA.
Director Hugo Medrano is GALA’s Founding Producing Artistic Director and has directed and performed in musicals and classical and contemporary plays in Argentina, Spain, Costa Rica, El Salvador, New York, Miami, and Washington. He has directed more than 100 productions, including the musicals Canto al Perú Negro, Bola-Cuba’s King of Song, Caribeana Imperia, Candombe: Tango Negro, Raíces cubanas I and II, Latido negro-Peru’s African Beat, and Brasil: As coisas do samba. He was nominated for a 2000 Helen Hayes Award for his direction of La dama boba, received a Helen Hayes Award nomination for his performance in El protagonista, and received the 1994 Helen Hayes Award for Outstanding Lead Actor for his role in Kiss of the Spider Woman.
Lighting design is by Joey Walls, and costumes are by Mariana Fernández. Andrés Holder is Production Manager and Andrés Luque is Technical Director.
ABOUT QUINTANGO
This acclaimed quintet is recognized for its chamber tango style and its unique interpretations of arrangements by some of the best tangueros of Buenos Aires. QuinTango was honored with a 2008 WAMMIE for its CD Triunfal, which won Best Latin Recording. The company has played at the White House, Kennedy Center, Lincoln Center, and in several concert series throughout the U.S. and Latin America.
Chris Vásquez wrote and performed The Son of Tango, A Tribute to Carlos Gardel, and To Live, To Love, To Tango! He has performed throughout the United States and in Medellin, Colombia and Buenos Aires, Argentina. He was recognized as “Best Singer’ in the New York International Tango Competition by the NY Argentine Consulate, and was a finalist at the Medellin International Tango Festival.
Emmanuel Trifilio is from Buenos Aires, where he studied bandoneón and was a member of the Los Inmigrantes Orchestra. He has performed at the legendary Café Tortoni and toured Chile with Maestro Tato Finocci. In Washington, he has performed at GALA in Momia en el closet-The Return of Eva Perón and with QuinTango.
TICKET INFORMATION
Single tickets for Puro Tango are $34 on Thursdays and Sundays, and $38 Fridays and Saturdays. Tickets for senior citizens (65+) and military are $20 on Thursdays and Sundays, and $26 on Fridays and Saturdays. Student tickets for all performances are $20. Additional discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.
Single Tickets for QuinTango are $25. Tickets for students, senior citizens (65+) and military are $20. Additional discounts are available for groups of 10 or more.
FOR TICKETS: Call (800) 494-8497, (202) 234-7174, or visit www.galatheatre.org
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