Gloria’s journey from paralysis to pop stardom
It’s time to get ‘On Your Feet!’ as the bittersweet story of Latin music sensation Gloria Estefan and the Miami Sound Machine is told in a new musical heading to Birmingham
GLORIA Estefan’s meteoric rise to stardom came to a shuddering halt at the height of her fame when a giant truck crashed into her tour bus during a snowstorm. The 1990 accident, while on a sell-out tour of America, left her with a broken back, and put her father in a wheelchair.
It was a long, dark road back to health, and threatened to spell the end of the dream for the Cuban immigrant whose family had fled the country’s revolution. She had captured hearts in her adoptive US and then the world, becoming known as the Queen of Latin Pop for her upbeat, catchy hits, sultry looks and great dance moves – but everything changed in the blink of an eye, her worst fears realised.
Two titanium rods were inserted into her spine and Gloria threw herself into rehab, enduring gruelling seven hours a day sessions, drawing inspiration from the goodwill of her fans and a determination to isnpire others.
“I thought, ‘If I end up in a chair, I’ll figure out how to live my best life in a chair but I’m going to fight hard,” she recently told the Mirror.
“I felt people’s prayers, I used them. I imagined them channelling into my spine and re-connecting stuff.
“I could have died but at the same time I started thinking, what if this was the reason I became famous, because I was destined to go through this and have the opportunity to be an example for people? Things happen to everybody and the outcome depends on how you deal with it.”
Just ten months later Gloria was back performing on a world tour, following the release of her hit album Into The Light.
Her rags to riches story, and subsequent battles, are the focus of an acclaimed new musical, On Your Feet!, which is coming to the Birmingham Hippodrome next month.
It is currently being met enthusiastically at London’s Coliseum where it is playing until the end of the month, then it will head out on the road, arriving first at the Hippodrome on September 3.
Gloria sees the musical as a love story not only between herself and Emilio but to both their native land and the US which embraced their talent. It is a feel-good yet nuanced celebration of their sound which came about after they met performing at a church emsemble, Emilio persuading Gloria to join the Miami Sound Machine.
What followed was the creation of a new Latin crossover sound – of mix of Cuban rhythms with American pop and disco.
Hit after hit came over the years, and 100 million records were sold, with classics including Rhythm Is Gonna Get You, Conga, Get On Your Feet, Dr Beat, Don’t Want To Lose You Now and 1-2-3, songs that all feature in the new musical. The audience even has the chance to conga their way to the bar at the end of the first act, a feature which was feared gimmicky but has been warmly embraced by theatre-goers!
The musical sees Christie Prades ( In the Heights, West Side Story), take the role as Gloria, George Ioannides ( Annie, Mamma Mia!, An Officer and a Gentleman) as Emilio Estefan, Philippa Stefani ( Rent, In the Heights, Wicked) as the Alternate Gloria Estefan, Madalena Alberto ( Evita, Cats, Les Misérables) as Gloria Fajardo and Karen Mann ( Sister Act, Fiddler on the Roof, Sweeney Todd) as Consuelo.
The impressive Prades, who has been widely praised for her performances in the lead role, started out as a replacement in the original 2015 Broadway production before moving up to headline the US tour of the show before continuing in her role in the UK.
Gloria Estefan and Emilio have been married for over 40 years, and live in Florida. They have two children – Emily 24, and son Nayib, 38. She explained how the accident only solidified their unbreakable bond.
“We’ve grown together, especially since my accident. Those things can break you apart, but it cemented us,” she says.
“We’re very different, so we balance each other out. But in the things that really matter, like priorities, it’s always our family, values, morals. We’re on the same page.”
Gloria has written two children’s books and a cookery book in recent years and she and Emilio own several businesses, including Cubanthemed restaurants and hotels.
The 61-year-old revealed confronting painful and intense memories in the making of the musical was tough, for her and Emilio.
“I got so emotional,” she said. “I looked to my husband for support. He was crying like a baby and I go, ‘God, are we going to do this?
“I have cried more in the last five years than in my entire lifetime because emotionally, you know, you just keeping reliving things.
“Music is the core. It got us, both Emilio and I, through our most difficult moments and it continues to enrich our lives.”
On Your Feet! comes to the Birmingham Hippodrome from Tuesday, September 3 to Saturday, September 7, with matinee performances on Wednesday, Thursday and Saturday. For tickets go to birminghamhippodrome.com or call 0844 338 5000.