About This Event
Cuban zarzuela Cecilia Valdes composed by Gonzalo Roig based on novel by Cirilo Villaverde.It is a work of importance for its quality, and its revelation of the interaction of classes and races in Havana, Cuba. The story takes place in colonial Cuba around 1830. The young and beautiful woman of mixed race, Cecilia Valdés, is the illegitimate daughter of powerful land magnate and slave trader, Cándido de Gamboa. Leonardo de Gamboa is his legitimate son who falls in love with Cecilia, not realizing that she is his own half-sister, and they become lovers. At the same time, a poor black musician, José Dolores Pimienta, is also hopelessly in love with Cecilia. Cecilia rejects Pimenta\'s advances and conceives Leonardo\'s son.