Charanga Danzon with Vampires in Havana July 18, 2008

Charanga Danzon; An evening of Cuban music and film

The first half of the show will be a concert of live music, great for the whole family (all ages), in the beautiful Great Hall of Fremont Abbey Arts Center, with lots of room for dancing! The concert will be followed by an 80-minute film, "Vampiros en La Habana" ("Vampires in Havana").**

THE MUSIC:

Charanga Danzon is a fluid ensemble of wonderful Seattle-based musicians led by violinist Irene Mitri, with a repertoire of Cuban music including traditional charanga, son/danzon, cha-cha-cha, classical, and jazz. This concert features:
Irene Mitri (violin), Jim O'Halloran (flutes), Fred Hoadley (piano, tres), Michael Nicolella (guitar), Andy Schloss (percussion), Ben Verdier (bass), and Pedro Vargas (percussion).

THE FILM:

VAMPIROS EN LA HABANA (Vampires in Havana), directed by Juan Padron
Featuring a hot latin jazz soundtrack with legendary Arturo Sandoval

This hilarious spoof of horror and gangster movies, presented in an outrageously caricatured, bawdy style reminiscent of Fritz the Cat, features Professor Von Dracula, a vampire scientist who leaves Transylvania for Cuba, where he invents "Vampisol", a potion that allows vampires to survive in sunlight. When the Professor announces his intention to donate the formula free of charge to vampires all over the world, the Vampire Mafia from Chicago and the European Union of Vampires from Dusseldorf try to muscle in and steal the formula. The action escalates crazily as an assortment of bad guys, police, vampires and other monsters, as well as our hero with his girlfriend, are all caught up in the chase.

Entertaining at many levels, the film is also a clever satire of political and military tensions between Cuba and its capitalist antagonists.

**PLEASE NOTE:
This film is an unrated animated comedy, has adult content, and is not suitable for children. I would give it a PG-13+/R rating. The film is in Spanish with English subtitles.

Kids 12 and under are welcome to the concert portion of the show, for $5 (in advance or at the door). Ages 13 and up need a general ticket. General $15 in advance, $20 at the door.

Official Website: http://www.charangadanzon.com