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While Cuba is going through a deep economic crisis, daily blackouts and a sustained decline in living conditions, the regime announced the celebration of the tenth edition of the Salsa Festival in Havana, scheduled from February 26 to March 1, with the main venue at Club 500.
The event, promoted as one of the most significant on the official cultural calendar, will celebrate its tenth anniversary and pay tribute to the 70th anniversary of the Elito Revé and his Charangón orchestra, an iconic group in Cuban popular dance music, according to the official site Cubadebate.
Maykel Blanco, founder and president of the festival, stated to the Cuban News Agency that the event will feature international participation, including DJs, instructors, and dance academies, and will continue its traditional outreach to communities and art schools. According to the musician, the event has gained “credibility and growth” over the course of a decade.
Starting Friday, February 27th, four orchestras will energize each night at Club 500. Among the announced artists are Los Van Van, Adalberto Álvarez and his Son, Alain Pérez, Alexander Abreu and Havana D’Primera, Haila María Mompié, Elito Revé and his Charangón, as well as Maykel Blanco and his Salsa Mayor.
Regarding tickets, the organizers reported that they are already on pre-sale at the Cine Yara, from Tuesday to Sunday, priced at 800 Cuban pesos (CUP). The cost at the venue will rise to 1,000 CUP per night, and a package will also be offered that includes all three days of the festival, prices that are inaccessible for a large part of the population in a context of depressed wages and uncontrolled inflation.
The announcement was made at a press conference attended by Edith Massola, artistic director of the festival; Eladio Marrero, president of Artex; Reynaldo Méndez, director of the Carnival Company of Havana, along with musicians and organizers.
Once again, the Salsa Festival stands out as a cultural and tourist showcase in a country engulfed in blackouts, shortages, and hardship—a contradiction that underscores the gap between official propaganda and the everyday reality of millions of Cubans.
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