English Translations of Cubans Writing From the Island
Havana Times, Lynn Cruz, 17 August 2018 – Last Saturday, we filmed a new scene for the movie Corazon Azul (Blue Heart) by Miguel Coyula. This time, we went to the Playa neighborhood in the capital where Paja Recol is located, a recording studio and Gorki Aguila’s home, leader of punk-rock band, Porno para Ricardo. It’s incredible how the fact … Continue reading “Making a Movie in Cuba with Porno Para Ricardo / Lynn Cruz”
Havana Times, Lynn Cruz, 17 July 2018 — Everybody knows that there has been a upswing of repression and censorship of artists here in Cuba. Within its institutions and recently, censorship of the film “Quiero hacer una pelicula” (I Want to Make A Movie) by Yimit Ramirez, during the previous edition of ICAIC’s Young Filmmakers’ Festival. … Continue reading “Persecution of Cuban Artists and Intellectuals Gains Legal Framework / Lynn Cruz”
The Stranger. A poem by Rafael Alcides, read by Lynn Cruz, filmed by Miguel Coyula.
14ymedio, Havana, 20 June 2018 — Ten days after his 85th birthday and after a long battle with cancer, the poet Rafael Alcides died at his home in Nuevo Vedado on Tuesday afternoon, his son Rafael confirmed to 14ymedio. Sources close to the family explained that there will be no funeral and that his ashes will be scattered … Continue reading “Writer Rafael Alcides Dies in Havana at the Age of 85”
Lynn Cruz, Havana Times, 20 June 2018 — Yesterday, on June 19, 2018, in the afternoon, 85-year-old Rafael Alcides passed away. The sensualist poet, friend and main character in “Nadie”managed to do what very few can: “Live in keeping with his ideals.” He spent his last days resting at his home in Nuevo Vedado, after having … Continue reading “Cuban Poet Rafael Alcides has Left Us / Lynn Cruz”
14ymedio, Havana, 21 May 2018 — Cuba’s Labor Justice Agency has ruled in favor of Lynn Cruz with regards to the claim presented by the actress after the Performing Arts Artistic Agency (Actuar) put an end to her contract last April without complying with the mandatory 30-day notice period. The artist was informed of the decision on … Continue reading “Cuba’s Labor Justice Agency Nullifies Dismissal of Actress Lynn Cruz”
Lynn Cruz, Havana Times, 19 April 2018 — People here have been talking about reggaeton lyrics for a long time. I remember the famous video which a grandfather uploaded to YouTube, where his trendsetting grandson was grinding on top of a girl like an adult to a raucous reggaeton beat. In front of my house, … Continue reading “Free Education with Clowns and Reggaeton / Lynn Cruz”
Havana Times, Lynn Cruz, 31 March 2018 — The first Independent Cuban Film Festival organized outside of Cuba coincided with my ban from entering the International Film School of San Antonio del Los Banos. With Cubans from the country of “Miami” taking the lead, the event had as its forerunner another that had been organized … Continue reading “Chronicle of a Journey After Being Expelled / Lynn Cruz”
Diario de Cuba, Waldo Fernandez Cuenca, Havana, 15 February 2018 — The theatrical work Los enemigos del pueblo (The Enemies of the People), whose presentation at the independent El Círculo State Security forces sought to prevent, undoubtedly marks a watershed in the career of actress Lynn Cruz. At that time she decided to create, with her partner the filmmaker Miguel Coyula, … Continue reading “Lynn Cruz is Committed to a Theater of Resistance”
Havana Times, Lynn Cruz, 5 February 2018 — I recently read Tania Bruguera’s statements about an artist’s rights. One of them referred to the artist’s right to dissent. Within an authoritarian system, the artist begins to live a double dissidence, first in art, then in society. Having your own voice is always grounds for suspicion among members … Continue reading ““They’re Using You””
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 15 January 2018 — The first Sunday of each month they meet in a park in Centro Habana and ride through the capital on a route that varies to avoid boredom. They are the members of Bicicletear La Habana (Havana Cycling), a group of cyclists that promotes the use of bikes as … Continue reading “Prejudices Put the Brakes on Bike Culture in Cuba”
14ymedio, Adonis Milán, Havana, 6 December 2017 — For the past two years I have been directing an independent group called Persephone Theater. We recently premiered the play Hamlet Machine, by the German author Heiner Müller, with a staging that shows the overwhelming parallelism between the former German Democratic Republic (GDR) and present-day Cuba. I traveled with this … Continue reading “My First Encounter with State Security”
Diario de Cuba, Havana, 23 December 2017 — Activist Lia Villares was released this Friday morning after being detained since Wednesday, activist Rosa María Payá Acevedo said in her Twitter account. Villares, in addition, was fined 500 pesos by the authorities, according to Martí Noticias. During the arrest, “her interrogators told her that she had committed crimes, and in order … Continue reading “Cuban Regime Frees Activist Lia Villares”
14ymedio, Havana, 24 November 2017 – Cuban State Security managed to limit attendance to just two people to last night’s premiere play The Enemies of the People. The police cordon set up around the El Círculo gallery in Havana’s Vedado neighborhood, where the play was going to be performed, worked as a method of pressure to intimidate would-be audience … Continue reading “Cuban State Security Blockades a Play in El Círculo Gallery (Updated)”
14ymedio, Luz Escobar, Havana, 5 May 2017 — Uncensored, fun and with many varied themes — this defines the producers of the paketito (little packet), a new compendium of audiovisual material that aims to fill the gaps left by the popular weekly packet. Unlike its predecessor, which is made and distributed publicly, the paketito lurks in the … Continue reading “The ‘Little Packet’, A Clandestine Rival For The ‘Weekly Packet’”
