• Skip to main content
  • Skip to secondary menu
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer
  • Search
  • Things To Do in NYC
  • Art
  • Dance
  • Festivals
  • Film
  • Music
  • Sports
  • Theatre
New York Latin Culture Magazine®

New York Latin Culture Magazine®

World-class Indigenous, European & African Culture since 2012

  • New York
  • Latin
  • Culture
  • Magazine
  • Subscribe
  • Sponsor

Luis Santeiro’s “Dancing With Dictators” is a Heartfelt Cabaret with the Music and Rhythms of Cuba

Luis Santeiro’s “Dancing With Dictators,” is a one-man cabaret that explores his family’s journey from pre-Castro Cuba to a traumatic exile in Miami during the turbulent 1960s.

It was hard, but Luis turned his Cuban American experience into a dream career as a multiple Emmy Award-winning writer for “¿Qué Pasa, USA?” and “Sesame Street.” See how one young Cuban became a Latino All-American, a living embodiment of the American Dream. Keep dancing, and keep dreaming! 🇨🇺

A Cuban Cabaret

Luis Santeiro's "Dancing with Dictators" (artist/Hostos Center)
Luis Santeiro’s “Dancing with Dictators” (artist/Hostos Center)

In this cabaret-style show directed by Ron Torres, Luis Santeiro explores his family’s journey from pre-Castro Cuba to traumatic exile in Miami during the turbulent 1960s. Forced to leave the island at age 12, he was determined to become all-American and put his Latino past behind.

But it wasn’t so simple. With a sense of humor, songs and stories he shares a lovely tribute to his family while exploring loss, the passage of time in his homeland, and the richness of being from two cultures.

Acclaimed Pianist Paul Greenwood and percussionist Rex Benincasa join Luis Santeiro on this journey.

Luis Santeiro

Luis Santeiro is a Cuban-American television screenwriter and playwright born in Havana, Cuba. At the age of 12 he left the island with his family for Miami, Florida.

He first worked as a television writer for Carrascolendas, a bilingual children’s television show that debuted in 1970 on the Austin, Texas, KLRN public television station.

¿Qué Pasa, USA?

In 1976 he became head writer of the bilingual sitcom ¿Qué Pasa, USA? a half-hour bilingual sitcom set in Miami’s Cuban exile community that traced the lives of three generations of Cubans trying to make it in their new homeland. Running for five years, the show received six regional Emmys and nine special awards from the Association of Critics and Commentators on the Arts for its producers, directors, writers, and cast. Santeiro wrote a total of thirty-three scripts for the show, including the pilot episode.

Sesame Street

In 1979 he joined the writing team of the children’s television program Sesame Street. Santeiro also contributed scripts and song lyrics to other children’s programs, such as 3-2-1 Contact, Big Bag, Oye, Willie, and Little Bill. For his writing for children’s television programs, Santeiro has been nominated for 20 Daytime Emmy Awards and has won 14 – 12 of these during his career with Sesame Street.

A Playwright

Santeiro is also recognized for his work as a playwright. Among his most notable plays are Our Lady of the Tortilla (1987), The Lady from Havana (1990), and The Rooster and the Egg (1994).

He’s an Artist Too!

Awards

For his musical Barrio Babies, Santeiro received the Edward Kleban and Richard Rodgers Award, and in 1995 was honored with the National Hispanic Academy of Media Arts and Sciences Award for his play A Royal Affair. Santeiro has also been recognized for his contributions to Latino arts and culture with honors such as the Hispanic Achievement Award (1991) and the Hispanic Heritage Award (1993).

Instagram @luissanteiro


Hostos Center Repertory Theater, Thursday, May 4, 2023
2pm Free with registration.
7pm $10, Students $5
hostos.cuny.edu

Tickets

hostos.cuny.edu


Published May 3, 2023 ~ Updated December 14, 2023.

Filed Under: .Cubans, Bronx, Hostos Center, Mott Haven, THEATRE

Subscribe

Get New York Latin Culture Magazine weekly in your email. We don’t share, rent, or sell addresses. You can unsubscribe at any time.

Primary Sidebar

Things to Do in NYC

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

Son Cubano + Rumba, Guajira & Salsa

Albita (Hostos Center)

Albita Celebrates the Evolution of Cuban Music From Rumba and Música Guajira, to Son Cubano and Salsa

Theatre Professionals ~ Employers Network

Find your next project. Discover your next team. Do it on RISE.

Sponsored By The Best Of New York

92nd Street Y, New York

Capulli Mexican Dance Company 🇲🇽

Brooklyn Museum

Carnegie Hall

Harlem Stage

Hostos Center

Melvis Santa & Jazz Orishas 🇨🇺

Metropolitan Opera

National Indigenous Peoples of the Americas Parade 🇺🇸

New York City Center

NYU Skirball Center

RISE Theatre Directory

Teatro Real ~ Royal Opera of Madrid 🇪🇸

World Music Institute

Footer

Search

Things to do in NYC

January, February, March, April, May, June, July, August, September, October, November, December

New York City

Bronx, Brooklyn, Manhattan, Queens, Staten Island ~ New Jersey

Latin Music and Dance

Bachata, Ballet, Cumbia, Classical, Flamenco, Hip Hop, House, Jazz, Merengue, Modern Dance, Opera, Pop, Reggaeton, Regional Mexican, Rock, Salsa, Samba, Tango, World Music

North American

African American, Honduran, Indigenous, Jewish, Mexican

Caribbean

Cuban, Dominican, Haitian, Puerto Rican, Trinidadian

South American

Argentine, Bolivian, Brazilian, Chilean, Colombian, Ecuadorian, Peruvian, Venezuelan

African

African American, Nigerian, South African

European

French, Portuguese, Spanish

Follow

X, Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, Pinterest, Threads, YouTube, TikTok

Subscribe

Get New York Latin Culture Magazine in your email

advertise

Sponsor

Details

Terms & Conditions | Privacy Policy | Cookies Policy

New York Latin Culture Magazine® and Tango Beat® are registered trademarks, and New York Latin Culture™ is a trademark of Keith Widyolar. Other marks are the property of their respective holders.

Copyright © 2012–2025 New York Latin Culture Magazine®. All Rights Reserved.

We use cookies to ensure that we give you the best experience on our website. If you continue to use this site we assume you are ok with it.Ok