Nacha Guevara
Encyclopedia
Nacha Guevara is an Argentine
singer and actress from Mar de Plata, Buenos Aires
, Argentina.
Trained as a dancer and actress, she discovered by chance a career as a singer becoming a symbol in the song of protest movement around 1968 in the avant-garde Instituto Di Tella in Buenos Aires
, the preeminent pioneer center for visual and theater experimentation at that time. She was a controversial cult figure
in the underground movement and as a singer-songwriter
in the "cafe-concert" scene, singing tunes and parodies
by Boris Vian
, George Brassens, Tom Lehrer
, Nicolas Guillén
and argentinian writers like Julio Cortázar
, Jorge de la Vega
, Ernesto Schoo and others.
At the beginning of 1970, one of her pivotal works was "Nacha sings Benedetti", where she and Alberto Favero, musical partner and at that time husband, wrote some of the most famous poems of Uruguay
an poet Mario Benedetti
to music.
In 1973 she obtained ample recognition by critics and audiences with a big revue named Las mil y una Nachas (One thousand and one Nachas). Nacha Guevara exiled herself first to Peru
then Mexico
during the Dirty War
, threatened by the Triple A death squad
. She attempted to make a comeback in 1976 with a new version of "Las mil y una Nachas". The show was never performed. After the dress rehearsal prior to the opening night, a bomb destroyed the theater, killing members of the crew and forcing her to flee the country once more.
She continued a successful career in Mexico, Cuba
and Spain
with performances in New York
, Chicago
and La Habana too, before returning to Argentina.
Nacha Guevara has acted in numerous Argentine films, as well as on Broadway
. However, she is best known for her extensive musical career, which has been realized throughout the world and over several decades.
After the end of the Argentinian dictatorship, she came back to her native country in 1984. In 1986 she starred Pedro Orgambide's Eva, an Argentinean answer to the musical Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber
. The show was redone for a bigger version in 2008 and renamed Eva, the great Argentinean musical.
In the last decades she won recognition as an actress, participating in movies and TV shows such as "Alas, Poder y Pasión" (Wings, Power and Passion) and films as "El Lado Oscuro del Corazón" (The Dark Side of the Heart) and its sequel
, where she plays Death, a symbolic character who is in love with the hero and harasses him, trying to take him to the other side.
Ahead of the June 2009 legislative elections
, Guevara has supported the ruling Front for Victory
faction of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
as a National Deputy
for Buenos Aires Province
, on the list headed by former President Néstor Kirchner
.
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
singer and actress from Mar de Plata, Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, Argentina.
Buenos Aires
Buenos Aires is the capital and largest city of Argentina, and the second-largest metropolitan area in South America, after São Paulo. It is located on the western shore of the estuary of the Río de la Plata, on the southeastern coast of the South American continent...
, the preeminent pioneer center for visual and theater experimentation at that time. She was a controversial cult figure
Cult following
A cult following is a group of fans who are highly dedicated to a specific area of pop culture. A film, book, band, or video game, among other things, will be said to have a cult following when it has a small but very passionate fan base...
in the underground movement and as a singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
in the "cafe-concert" scene, singing tunes and parodies
Parody
A parody , in current usage, is an imitative work created to mock, comment on, or trivialise an original work, its subject, author, style, or some other target, by means of humorous, satiric or ironic imitation...
by Boris Vian
Boris Vian
Boris Vian was a French polymath: writer, poet, musician, singer, translator, critic, actor, inventor and engineer. He is best remembered today for his novels. Those published under the pseudonym Vernon Sullivan were bizarre parodies of criminal fiction, highly controversial at the time of their...
, George Brassens, Tom Lehrer
Tom Lehrer
Thomas Andrew "Tom" Lehrer is an American singer-songwriter, satirist, pianist, mathematician and polymath. He has lectured on mathematics and musical theater...
, Nicolas Guillén
Nicolás Guillén
Nicolás Cristóbal Guillén Batista was a Cuban poet, journalist, political activist, and writer. He is best remembered as the national poet of Cuba.Guillén was born in Camagüey, Cuba...
and argentinian writers like Julio Cortázar
Julio Cortázar
Julio Cortázar, born Jules Florencio Cortázar, was an Argentine writer. Cortázar, known as one of the founders of the Latin American Boom, influenced an entire generation of Spanish speaking readers and writers in the Americas and Europe.-Early life:Cortázar's parents, Julio José Cortázar and...
, Jorge de la Vega
Jorge de la Vega
Jorge de la Vega was an Argentine abstract painter. His wife was Pauleta de la Vega....
, Ernesto Schoo and others.
At the beginning of 1970, one of her pivotal works was "Nacha sings Benedetti", where she and Alberto Favero, musical partner and at that time husband, wrote some of the most famous poems of Uruguay
Uruguay
Uruguay ,officially the Oriental Republic of Uruguay,sometimes the Eastern Republic of Uruguay; ) is a country in the southeastern part of South America. It is home to some 3.5 million people, of whom 1.8 million live in the capital Montevideo and its metropolitan area...
an poet Mario Benedetti
Mario Benedetti
Mario Benedetti was an Uruguayan journalist, novelist, and poet....
to music.
In 1973 she obtained ample recognition by critics and audiences with a big revue named Las mil y una Nachas (One thousand and one Nachas). Nacha Guevara exiled herself first to Peru
Peru
Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean....
then Mexico
Mexico
The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of...
during the Dirty War
Dirty War
The Dirty War was a period of state-sponsored violence in Argentina from 1976 until 1983. Victims of the violence included several thousand left-wing activists, including trade unionists, students, journalists, Marxists, Peronist guerrillas and alleged sympathizers, either proved or suspected...
, threatened by the Triple A death squad
Death squad
A death squad is an armed military, police, insurgent, or terrorist squad that conducts extrajudicial killings, assassinations, and forced disappearances of persons as part of a war, insurgency or terror campaign...
. She attempted to make a comeback in 1976 with a new version of "Las mil y una Nachas". The show was never performed. After the dress rehearsal prior to the opening night, a bomb destroyed the theater, killing members of the crew and forcing her to flee the country once more.
She continued a successful career in Mexico, Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
and Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
with performances in New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
, Chicago
Chicago
Chicago is the largest city in the US state of Illinois. With nearly 2.7 million residents, it is the most populous city in the Midwestern United States and the third most populous in the US, after New York City and Los Angeles...
and La Habana too, before returning to Argentina.
Nacha Guevara has acted in numerous Argentine films, as well as on Broadway
Broadway theatre
Broadway theatre, commonly called simply Broadway, refers to theatrical performances presented in one of the 40 professional theatres with 500 or more seats located in the Theatre District centered along Broadway, and in Lincoln Center, in Manhattan in New York City...
. However, she is best known for her extensive musical career, which has been realized throughout the world and over several decades.
After the end of the Argentinian dictatorship, she came back to her native country in 1984. In 1986 she starred Pedro Orgambide's Eva, an Argentinean answer to the musical Evita by Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber
Andrew Lloyd Webber, Baron Lloyd-Webber is an English composer of musical theatre.Lloyd Webber has achieved great popular success in musical theatre. Several of his musicals have run for more than a decade both in the West End and on Broadway. He has composed 13 musicals, a song cycle, a set of...
. The show was redone for a bigger version in 2008 and renamed Eva, the great Argentinean musical.
In the last decades she won recognition as an actress, participating in movies and TV shows such as "Alas, Poder y Pasión" (Wings, Power and Passion) and films as "El Lado Oscuro del Corazón" (The Dark Side of the Heart) and its sequel
Sequel
A sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
, where she plays Death, a symbolic character who is in love with the hero and harasses him, trying to take him to the other side.
Ahead of the June 2009 legislative elections
Argentine legislative election, 2009
Legislative elections were held in Argentina for half the seats in the Chamber of Deputies and a third of the seats in the Senate on 28 June 2009, as well as for the legislature of the City of Buenos Aires and other municipalities.-Background:...
, Guevara has supported the ruling Front for Victory
Front for Victory
The Front for Victory is a Peronist political party and electoral alliance in Argentina, although it is formally a faction of the Justicialist Party. Both the former President Néstor Kirchner and the current President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner belong to this party, located on the left-wing...
faction of President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Fernández de Kirchner
Cristina Elisabet Fernández de Kirchner , commonly known as Cristina Fernández or Cristina Kirchner is the 55th and current President of Argentina and the widow of former President Néstor Kirchner. She is Argentina's first elected female president, and the second female president ever to serve...
as a National Deputy
Argentine Chamber of Deputies
The Chamber of Deputies is the lower house of the Argentine National Congress. This Chamber holds exclusive rights to create taxes, to draft troops, and to accuse the President, the ministers and the members of the Supreme Court before the Senate....
for Buenos Aires Province
Buenos Aires Province
The Province of Buenos Aires is the largest and most populous province of Argentina. It takes the name from the city of Buenos Aires, which used to be the provincial capital until it was federalized in 1880...
, on the list headed by former President Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Kirchner
Néstor Carlos Kirchner was an Argentine politician who served as the 54th President of Argentina from 25 May 2003 until 10 December 2007. Previously, he was Governor of Santa Cruz Province since 10 December 1991. He briefly served as Secretary General of the Union of South American Nations ...
.