Latin American Myths and Legends
"I'm learning about really scary myths and legends..." my son recently told me, recounting all the famous Greek tales, Cyclops, The Trojan Horse etc etc. "Ha," I replied. "Those are nothing compared…
Blood Wedding, by Gabriel Garcia Lorca at The Courtyard Theatre
Beautiful, affecting and credible, The Courtyard’s production of Blood Wedding does more than justice to Lorca’s sublime play about love at its highest levels of intensity.
Miguel Hernandez: The Man with Lots of Heart
Today, on the 30th October in 1910, in the town of Orihuela in southeastern Spain, Miguel Hernandez was born. As we come to the end of the month of October, it would seem an apt moment to delve a little into the work and life of…
“Beyond the Legend…Lies a More Fascinating Truth”
It was a gloomy Sunday. The grey sky and all-consuming rain made my bed feel like a toasty heaven, which I was reluctant to leave. However, the anticipation and desire to see first-hand the beautiful gold art work of my…
Bon Voyage, Mr President and Other Stories by Gabriel Garcia Marquez (Penguin Books, 1995)
An insight into the world of the great Colombian writer that touches on subjects that everyone can relate to. A beautiful book to read when in between books or when in need of a short term change in literature.
Butterfly Catching
In Madame Butterfly, the One Man Opera, the butterfly takes flight one more time as the abandoned son goes looking for his father in the US. Mexican born Ignacio Jarquin, who himself metamorphosised from Opera conductor to singer…
Stockholm (dir. Omar Al Abdul Razzak 2012)
A superbly crafted film exploring the politics of desire and attraction
The Alchemist by Paolo Coelho
From the first page you are thrown in to the deep end with magical stories and explanations of what alchemy is, however at no point do you feel out of your depth. Written in third person, the world of a magical adventures and…
Southern Exile
As the Tate Modern hosts the first exhibition of Mira Schendel's work in a decade, we take a look at this extraordinary Swiss born artist who made Brazil her home, escaping a hostile Europe to finding artistic freedom and…
Travelling Heart
The new film Viramundo follows legendary Brazilian singer-songwriter Gilberto Gil on a musical journey from Bahia, Brazil to Australia, South Africa, and back to the Brazilian Amazon. It had its UK premier at Barbican in late…
...The Greatest Latin American Plays of all time
A selection by Daniel Goldman, Artistic Director of CASA Latin American Theatre Festival
Joining the Dots (Dir. Pablo Romero-Fresco)
Joining the Dots (2012) tells the story of Trevor, who lost his sight at the age of 60. Following a period of depression, he found his way out with the help of audiodescription, which also enabled him to rekindle his passion for…
Un-Dazzling the Gold
As The British Museum awaits over 200 hundred spectacular pre-Columbian gold objects from Bogotá’s Museo de Oro to exhibit in its ‘Beyond El Dorado’ exhibition, Colombians in London might be thinking of protesting rather than…
Juana in a Million
A mesmerising one-woman Latina show at The Southwark Playhouse until 15th June
Grupo 7 Dir. Alberto Rodriguez (2012)
A Spanish film about urban ‘clean up’ operations in the run up to staging international events, one which the Rio de Janeiro government members might want to watch
Federico García Lorca, Sketches of Spain, with illustrations by Julian Bell.
The Spectrum of Young Lorca.
Split Identity
Viggo Mortenson’s Argentine background (hence his perfect porteño accent) is unknown to most film fans. In this film, the actor famous for his role as Aragorn in Lord of The Rings, The Road and Eastern Promises embraces his ‘…
Let Me Entertain You: Boris Izaguirre in London
Move over Graham Norton. He's in town for one night only, and he's bound to cause quite a splash. Award-winning novelist, beloved TV presenter, honorary Spaniard and gay icon Boris Izaguirre is much more than a…
Lost and Found in Mexico
An English boy follows the family myth of his great-grandfather's notorious adventures in Mexico in search of an ending, and finds more than he could ever have imagined.
Things you should know about....Argentine Cinema
Get inspired with ten facts about one of the world's most dynamic and creative film nations.
Things You Should Know About... Spanish Cinema
From Civil War and Censorship to Scandal and Sexual Desire, here's a few things you might want to know about Spanish Cinema.
Carlos Saura – A Flamenco Retrospective
The great film director's passion for Flamenco marked his career and helped force the arts establishments in Spain and abroad to give this great art form the respect it was due. Here we pay tribute...
'Casa de mi padre'
“If it sounds Spanish, man, that's what it is; it's a Spanish movie.”
Producing the Image of Spain
Executive producer Gervasio Iglesias, Director of Zanfoña Producciones, one of Spain’s most exciting film production outfits, talks to Latinolife about making films in the current crisis and their latest release Unit 7.
Bad Education
Eduardo Chapero-Jackson has been dubbed by critics as the latest ‘one to watch’ in new Spanish cinema. Here at London'sThe Spanish Film Festival, supported by the Cervantes Institute, the writer and director talks to…
Venezuela Rising
As international artists hail Venezuela as ‘the future of music’ Candela explores why recognition has taken so long to come.
Surrogate Latino #1 Ian Mursell – Founder of Mexicolore with Graciela Sanchez
LAYING DOWN THE LORE – For 30 years Ian Mursell, development education specialist and his wife Graciela Sánchez, a dancer with the world famous Ballet Folklórico de México, and have worked with 2,000 primary schools and a wealth…
Macho, sexist, leery - lovely...
Flirting with strangers in the street is a way of life in Buenos Aires. One gringa tries very hard to disapprove.
Latins in London - The Photographs of Julio Etchart
Julio Etchart first arrived in the UK from Uruguay in the 1970s and has worked as a photojournalist for the national and international press ever since, winning prestigious prizes such as World Press Award, First Prize, for his…
New Spanish Cinema - Daniel Monzon and Film Philosophy at its best
On the DVD release of Cell 211, Latinolife interviews Daniel Monzón, one of the new great directors of Spanish Cinema, Daniel Monzón reveals his passions and fears during the making of his film, which ended in some unexpected,…
The End of the World As We Know It
Roxana Silbert, the Royal Shakespeare Company’s Argentine born Associate-Director, talks to Elizabeth Mistry about the RSC's joint venture with Mexico's Teatro Nacional which opens in Stratford before transferring to…
Clash of the Literary Titans? (and THAT black eye)
Candela explores the beef between Gabriel García Márquez and Mario Vargas Llosa that has long been the intrigue of the literary world. Now that the Peruvian has won the Nobel Prize for Literature, is it time for Latin America…
The Unusual Spaniard
As daughter of Hollywood legend Charlie Chaplin, Geraldine Chaplin was destined for fame or failure in her own film career. Instead, she became an unlikely icon of Spanish cinema through some unusual choices of her own.…
Macedonio Fernandez - The Non-Believer's Belief
This week it is sixty years since the death of Macedonio Fernández, the Argentine writer and philosopher, who Jorge Luis Borges admitted he imitated ‘to the point of devoted and impassioned plagiarism.’ Yet virtually nothing is…