28-02-2025
'Carnaval 2025: Veinte Años' brings music, dance and traditions to life
Feb. 27—Take a journey to four iconic Carnival destinations without leaving the comfort of the National Hispanic Cultural Center with "Carnaval 2025: Veinte Años."
Guests will be immersed in the music, cultures and dance of four locales who are known to enthusiastically celebrate Carnival — Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago, Cuba and New Orleans. The festivities at the NHCC will begin at 7:30 p.m. Saturday, March 1.
"This is our 20th year of doing the show at the National Hispanic Cultural Center, and it's a one of a kind show," said Frank Leto, producer, director and composer of the event.
"We take the audience to Brazil to experience Carnival in Brazil, where they play samba," Leto said. "We take them to Trinidad and Tobago, where they play calypso music and steel drums. We also take the audience to Cuba, where they have the comparsa and the conga rhythms that they use during Carnival, and then we take them to New Orleans."
Carnival is a celebration of life that occurs just before the Catholic observance of Lent, a time of fasting, praying and abstinence. Traditionally, people celebrate with extravagant dances, celebrations and meals before Lent begins, and this year is no exception.
An eight-piece band, PANdemonium, featuring local musicians, will fill the theater with sound during the show and this year, guests will have a dance floor where they can dance along to vibrant sounds that mimic the feeling of Carnival.
"They get solos and get a chance to really cut loose," Leto said. "This year, I chose mostly just very danceable songs that we're going to be performing. The music is just really uplifting and exciting."
Leto composed and wrote music that will be performed in the show. He plays steel drums, which are called pan in Trinidad. Leto said the band was "a vehicle for me to perform my original music."
While musicians jam out during the performance, dancers from the Odara Dance Ensemble will fill the stage with different styles of dance like Afro Cuban, Brazilian and Trinidadian dances. The dance ensemble was created by Leto's wife Pilar, who died in 2024. Many of the dances performed will feature steps passed down from Pilar Leto.
"I love what Carnival represents," Leto said. "It represents living in the moment and acknowledging the things that you have in your life that you need to be thankful for."
"Carnival happens right before Lent, and this is a time when people sort of overindulge in those things because they know they're going to have to give up dancing and drinking and listening to music," Leto added. "This is a time for them to celebrate before they go into prayers and withholding."
