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Produced by Tango Lovers and presented by the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago, Volver kicks off its ten-city U.S. tour with a performance at Nichols Concert Hall in Evanston on Friday, October 14
CHICAGO (September 22, 2022) – From the creators of the critically acclaimed spectacle I Am Tango comes a brand new show: Volver, a multi-media extravaganza with music, dance, lights, and a wide screen with ongoing visuals. Produced by Tango Lovers and presented by the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago as part of their year-round Chicago Latino Music Series, Volver kicks off a ten-city U.S. tour with a performance at Nichols Concert Hall, 1490 Chicago Ave. in Evanston, Friday October 14 at 7 p.m. Tickets are $45 general admission and $40 for ILCC members and can be purchased online at https://www.eventbrite.com/e/volver-tickets-399053689327?aff=Press1
Volver marks the return to the stage of the large-scale productions we enjoyed before the pandemic while also telling the story of tango artists returning to their home country after working abroad. The show explores the feelings of nostalgia and longing for one’s homeland as well as the excitement and awakening to a new world and a new life. The five dance couples, which include World Tango Champions from Argentina and Uruguay, and the seven-piece musical group led by Grammy and Latin Grammy-award winning bandoneonist Lautaro Greco, will take the audience around the world and through time in a whirlwind of dance, music, and breathtaking visuals. But it also stands as a tribute to Alfredo Lérida, founder of Tango Lovers, who passed away last year. Born in Montevideo, Uruguay, Lérida shared the stage with such great tango artists as Rubén Juárez, Raúl Jaurena, Federico Britos, Luis Dimas, and Nestor Fabian. Alfredo created the show Enamorados del Tango and remained a singer, general director, and producer of Tango Lovers until his death. His company Tango Lovers received the ACE award and the Fox Music award in 2016 and 2017 as Best Musical Show of the Year. His company was appointed Cultural Ambassadors by the Uruguayan government.
“We are delighted to bring this spectacle to Chicago and to help this amazing company of musicians, dancers, singers, and stage technicians kick off their U.S. tour here,” said Pepe Vargas, Executive Director of the International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago. “Volver tells a poignant story, through song and dance, about the immigrant experience and what we most miss about our homelands. It is also the perfect example of the kind of diverse musical programs the Center has produced and will keep producing this year through its Chicago Latino Music Series.”
The International Latino Cultural Center’s year-round programming is made possible with the support from the following: Chicago’s Cultural Treasures, The Illinois Arts Council – A State Agency, The Reva & David Logan Foundation, The MacArthur Fund for Culture, Equity, and the Arts at Prince, Chicago DCASE, The Joyce Foundation, Gaylord & Dorothy Donnelley Foundation, The Paul M Angell Family Foundation, The League of Chicago Theatres & ComEd, and The Field Foundation of Illinois.
MEET THE ARTISTS BEHIND VOLVER
PIERINA ASTI-SCHULZ (Producer/Director): An Industrial Engineer specializing in Innovation and Market Disruption at Harvard University with triple Masters in Business Administration, Pierina was a member of the production team in themultiple award-winning documentary The Quest for Wonder hosted by Richard Bangs. Along with her passion for art and cultural development, she has applied her knowledge to the production and expansion of Tango Lovers since 2012. She is giving continuity to the legacy of her late husband Alfredo Lérida.
LAUTARO GRECO (Musical Director/Bandoneón): Winner of several Grammy and Latin Grammy awards for his participation in such albums as Rubén Blades’s Tango and the Quintento Astor Piazzolla’s Revolucionario, Lautaro Greco is today recognized as one of the top four bandoneón players in the world. He learned to play the instrument from his father, Pablo Greco, and has shared the stage with such legendary tango musicians as Rubén Juarez, Fernando Suárez Paz (Astor Piazzola’s violinist), Raúl Lavié and Guillermo Fernández (singer) and such Latin American artists as Marisa Monte. Lautaro played with the legendary orchestra Sexteto Mayor for four years. He is currently co-director, with his brother Emiliano, of the Grecos Tango Septet.
EMILIANO GRECO (Pianist): A graduate of the Astor Piazzolla Conservatory of Music and the Tangueros Styles Conservatory Argentino Galván, Emiliano is a young composer and arranger who has recorded several albums where he has contributed as composer. He has also been the musical director for some of the most important tango houses in Argentina and has toured around the world with tango show companies and musical bands such as Vice-versa.
ACHE REY (Singer): One of the most relevant young voices in the tango scene today, Achem has performed for such companies as Tango Lovers, La Esquina de Carlos Gardel, and Tango and Origin. He has also participated as a guest singer with Quinteto Real, Julio Pane Orchestra, and the Symphonic Orchestra of Avellaneda and performed in the iconic Buenos Aires tango houses Homero Manzi, Tango Porteño, Piazzolla Tango, Sabor a Tango, and Centro Cultural Borges.
SANTIAGO PLAZ (Singer): Santiago inherited the passion for tango and started to sing at the age of 14. Selected by Alfredo Lérida to perform with his company, Santiago is now part of the “Fundación Artística Alfredo Lérida”, which aims to form talent from Rio de la Plata to perform on international stages He made his premiere in one of the most prestigious theaters of his native Uruguay, the Auditorio Nacional Adela Reta, with Lérida’s latest creation, Mirando al Sur.
ABOUT THE ILCC
The International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago is a pan-Latino, nonprofit, multidisciplinary arts organization dedicated to developing, promoting, and increasing awareness of Latino cultures among Latinos and other communities by presenting a wide variety of art forms and education including film, music, dance, visual arts, comedy, theater, and culinary arts.
The Center prides itself for its outstanding multidisciplinary local and international cultural programming which spans Latin America, Spain, Portugal, and the United States.
Born out of the Chicago Latino Film Festival, The International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago also produces other programs, including the Latino Music Series, which is celebrating its 16th edition this year; Film in the Parks, also in its 16th season; the monthly Reel Film Club, already in its 14th year; and many others. All in all, the audience has grown from 500 people in 1985 for the first Chicago Latino Film Festival to more than 70,000 (Latinos and non-Latinos) who enjoy the year-round multidisciplinary cross-cultural exchanges offered by the Center.
Contact
Alejandro A. Riera
International Latino Cultural Center of Chicago
press@latinoculturalcenter.org
(773) 726-1833