Argos Teatro theatre group
Havana, May 19 (RHC)-- The play ‘Hierro’ (Iron) by Argos Teatro theatre group reveals little known aspects on the life of Cuban National hero José Martí and the time he spent in Tampa and New York.
Playwright Carlos Celdrán, a National Theatre Prize laureate, based this new approach to the Cuban revolutionary on texts like ‘El Martí que yo conocí’ (The Martí I knew), written by Martí’s friend Blanche Zacharie de Baralt, in 1945. It reveals a sensible human being, his personal experiences, his passions, what kept him awake at night, his relationship with his wife Carmen Zayas Bazán.
The play focuses on events between 1885 and 1892, as well as Martí’s links with Cuban emigres in New York.
Cuban actor Caleb Casas, who plays the role of Martí said it was an honor as much as a challenge. He said Martí is known as a man of letters, an exceptional intellectual and a great orator, but he was also a good listener, a sincere and open-minded person, humble and sweet.
Besides Caleb, other actors and actresses starring in the play include Rachel Pastor in the role of Carmita Miyares, the wife of Manuel Mantilla; Maridelmis Marín playins the part of Martí’s wife Carmen Zayas Bazán, also Daniel Romero, Mariana Valdés, José Luis Hidalgo, Abel López and Waldo Franco.
Also, in the framework of activities on the 126th anniversary of José Martí’s death in combat, this May 19th, the José Martí Studies Center and the Ministry of Culture and Sports of Guatemala signed an agreement to reissue of several texts written by the Cuban national hero.
Cuban researcher Mauricio Núñez Rodríguez said that since the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between Cuba and Guatemala in 1998, José Martí, his legacy has served as a mediator, a bridge to boost cultural links between the Havana-based José Martí center and prestigious institutions in the Central American nation like the Universidad de San Carlos de Guatemala.
He said the agreement provides for the reissue of texts written by Martí during the time he lived in Guatemala between 1877 and 1878, including ‘Lucía Jerez’, the only novel written by José Martí, considered by critics among the first and most important novels of Hispanic American Modernism. Other texts include ‘La Edad de Oro’ (Golden Age), which will be presented at an International Meeting of Experts in José Martí’s Life and Work, set for November in Guatemala City.
