Grammy winner Gloria Estefan has announced via Instagram that she and her daughter Emily Estefan are writing music and lyrics for a new musical titled Five Notes. The piece tells the story of Favio Chávez and Paraguay's Orquesta De Reciclados De Cateura (Recycled Orchestra of Cateura).
Five Notes is based on the award-winning documentary Landfill Harmonic. The work will also feature a book by Karen Zacarías, and direction by Michael Greif. Ken Cerniglia serves as dramaturg, with music supervision by Alex Lacamoire.
Estefan shared in her post that she and the Five Notes team were able to meet the Recycled Orchestra themselves. "We had the good fortune to meet them at a surprise visit and tell them about our new musical," she wrote. "...this is a story that celebrates the power of music, resilience, and community."
The Recycled Orchestra of Cateura is an orchestra made up of children from Asunción, Paraguay, using instruments made from landfill materials. The orchestra was formed in 2012, and since then they have performed internationally with artists including Stevie Wonder and Metallica.
Estefan's music has graced the Broadway stage in the past in On Your Feet!, the jukebox musical based on the lives and work of Estefan and her husband Emilio Estefan. On Your Feet! opened on Broadway November 5, 2015, and played 34 previews and 746 regular performances before closing August 20, 2017.
For more information, visit GloriaEstefan.com.
