Buena Vista Social Club on Broadway Tickets

Buena Vista Social Club in New York

It’s the hottest ticket in town! New musical Buena Vista Social Club brings the beat to Broadway’s Schoenfeld Theatre, following a critically acclaimed run at the Atlantic Theater Off-Broadway. A world-class Afro-Cuban band and cast of powerhouse performers tell the unforgettable true story of the people behind the Grammy Award-winning album Buena Vista Social Club in this “full-of-riches jukebox musical” (The New York Times).

What is the musical Buena Vista Social Club about?

Shimmy into the heart of 1950s Havana, where a group of talented young musicians are ready to change the face of the Cuban music scene forever - until the revolution stops them in their tracks. Forty years later they reunite as Buena Vista Social Club to finally record the songs they were forced to leave behind. Recorded over only six days, the band's eponymous album was a smash hit, winning a Grammy and selling over a million copies.

With “exquisite harmonies, delirious polyrhythms and raw brass” (The New York Times), this brand new musical features beloved songs from the best-selling album - performed in the original Spanish - and shines a light on the legends behind this iconic piece of musical history. Spanning four decades, the musical interweaves the past with the present from the musicians' beginnings in 1950s pre-revolutionary Cuba to their reunion to record the album in 1996. In this “celebration of Cuban musical history” (Time Out) Buena Vista Social Club tells the story of the courageous artists who overcame oppression and political upheaval to share their music with the world.

Buena Vista Social Club Broadway Cast

Main Cast:

• Omara — Natalie Venetia Belcon
• Compay — Julio Monge
• Ibrahim — Mel Semé
• Rubén — Jainardo Batista Sterling
• Young Omara — Isa Antonetti
• Young Compay — Da’von Moody
• Young Ibrahim — Wesley Wray
• Young Rubén — Leonardo Reyna
• Eliades — Renesito Avich
• Young Haydee — Ashley De La Rosa
• Juan de Marcos — Justin Cunningham

The Broadway transfer of Buena Vista Social Club has retained many of the company from the original run, made up of a mixture of Broadway veterans, professional musicians and a young company of the bright new stars of tomorrow. The cast includes Natalie Venetia Belcon (Rent ) as Omara, Julio Monge (On Your Feet ) as Compay, Mel Seme as Ibrahim, Jainardo Batista Sterling as Rubén and Latin Grammy-nominee Renesiti Avechi as Eliades.

Buena Vista Social Club Creatives

Buena Vista Social Club was developed by Tony, Drama Desk and Lucille Lortel Award-nominated director Saheem Ali (Goddess, The Rolling Stone ), who also directs. With a book by Marco Ramirez (The Royale ) and music and lyrics by Buena Vista Social Club, music production by Tony Award winner David Yazbek (The Band’s Visit ), orchestration and arrangement by Drama Desk Award winner Marco Paguia (The Heart of Rock and Roll ) and a full Afro-Cuban band. Choreography is by Patricia Delgado (Spielberg’s West Side Story ) and Tony winner Justin Peck (Carousel ).

Who were the real Buena Vista Social Club?

Who were the real people behind the music? Brought together by producer Nick Gold and guitarist Ry Cooder, Buena Vista Social Club was a musical ensemble, primarily composed of Cuban musicians, that spanned generations; named after the members-only club in Havana where many of the members began their performing careers.

Twenty musicians contributed to the recording - which was done in only six days - including singers Ibrahim Ferrer, Omara Portuondo and 89-year old Compay Segundo, vocalist and guitarist Eliades Ochoa, bassist Orlando ‘Cachaíto’ López, trumpet player Manuel ‘Guajiro’ Miraba, pianist Rubén González and laoúd player Barbarito Torres.

The album was an enormous success, snatching a Grammy in 1998, and in 2022 was acknowledged by Guinness World Records as the best-selling world music album and chosen by the Library of Congress to be preserved in the United States National Recording Registry as "culturally historically or aesthetically significant".

Whilst many of the original members have now sadly passed, Buena Vista Social Club remains celebrated to this day - a true testament to the lasting power of music. In Buena Vista Social Club at the Schoenfeld Theatre the “past harmonizes with the present” (The New York Times) to tell the story of these trailblazing musicians.

Book Tickets Now for Buena Vista Social Club on Broadway

So get the band back together and come on down to the Buena Vista Social Club - aka the Schoenfeld Theatre. Filled with red-hot choreography and beloved songs from the record-breaking album, Buena Vista Social Club offers a glimpse behind the music - you won't want to miss it, so book today!