Waldo Mendoza’s “Return to the Heart” Tour

Following the positive reception from audiences of the storyline, characters, and soundtrack of the Cuban telenovela “Return to the Heart,” renowned Cuban singer and songwriter Waldo Mendoza, together with the cast of actors featured in the television production, will tour several provinces across the country with a series of presentations that combine acting, live music, and stage performances.

Guantánamo, Santiago de Cuba, Holguín, Camagüey, Sancti Spíritus, Cienfuegos, the beach resort of Varadero, Artemisa, and Havana’s Karl Marx Theater will all host this cultural journey. Also participating will be urban artist Fabio Bolaños Hernández —Fabicile— who, alongside Waldo, performs the hit song “Red Lips,” a joint creation that forms part of the telenovela’s soundtrack and is currently making waves on social media.

The tour will also feature instrumentalists from the band D’wApe, singer César Quintana, Mamá estoy brillando (Wilfredo Alejandro Sosa Espinosa), and presenter, singer, and actor Tony Lugones. Lugones performs two of the series’ tracks: “The Most Important Thing,” written by the successful Baracoa-born Ronkalunga (Ronaldo Rodríguez), and the duet “Complete Men” with Waldo Mendoza, who is the principal creator of most of the compositions.

Appropriately titled “Return to the Heart,” the tour will provide an opportunity to perform live not only the songs that make up the soundtrack, but also selections from “Santiago en mí,” Waldo’s most recent album, which pays tribute to the musical roots of eastern Cuba.

The inaugural concert, Mendoza announced, will take place on September 20 at the Pedro Agustín Pérez multifunctional plaza in Guantánamo’s capital city. From there, the tour will continue to Santiago de Cuba —at the Café Cantante of the Heredia Theater on the 21st and the Ranchón del Músico on the 23rd— then move on to the Bariay Cultural Complex on the 25th, and the Gibara Cultural Complex in Holguín on the 26th.

The itinerary continues westward with stops in Camagüey —September 27 in Nuevitas and September 28 at the Principal Theater— followed by concerts from September 30 to October 3 in Sancti Spíritus —at the Casa de la Música in Trinidad, the provincial capital, La Sierpe, and the Principal Theater. The tour will then arrive at Rancho Cristal in Cienfuegos on October 5 and the Casa de la Música in Varadero on October 11.

The celebration of music and performance will culminate in Havana with a concert at the Karl Marx Theater on October 19, and a special presentation in Artemisa on October 24, closing this cycle of concerts, which also aims to mark the conclusion of Cuba’s National Culture Day festivities.

Mendoza described the event as “an opportunity to share music and showcase artistic talent as a whole.” This cultural undertaking is sponsored by the Ministry of Culture, the Musicuba Artistic Representation Agency of the Cuban Music Recording and Publishing Company, and the Cuban Institute of Music.