Secrets, romance, revenge, betrayals, repentance and of course, music and dance, are some ingredients of the new musical Aventurera, based on A. Custonio's 1949 Mexican film of the same title. Adapted by Mexican playwright Carlos Olmos and directed by Enrique Pineda, Aventurera runs at the Salon los Angeles, an actual dancing club in Mexico City, Thurs. 8:30 pm, Fri. 7 pm and 9:30 pm and Sat. at 6 pm and 8 pm, for an open-ended run.

Set in Mexico, 1949, "Aventurera" tells the story of Elena, an innocent young woman who is forced to turn into a prostitute by Rosaura, a mysterious woman who spends nights as the glamorous host of her own nightclub and days as a high society respectable lady. One day, Elena gets tired of Rosaura´s evil and leaves that life to become a famous dancing star at a fancy nightclub, where she meets Rosaura´s son, Mario. Elena and Mario fall in love, but she has to decide whether or not to tell him the truth about his mother.

There are no original songs written for the show, but instead the creative team selected some popular songs and music from the period. The score includes Agustin Lara´s song Aventurera, used in the film version, which was directed by Alberto Gout and starred Ninon Sevilla, Andrea Palma, Tito Junco and Ruben Rojo.

In order to create a real nightclub atmosphere, Aventurera will be performed at the actual dancing club Salon los Angeles. This creates a unique interactive theatrical experience in the style of "Tamara" and "Tony N' Tina´s Wedding".The Chuy Millan Orchestra will fill the club with rhythms like Rumba, Mambo and Cha-Cha-Cha, and in a certain scene, some members of the audience will be invited to dance with a character partner.

Starring in Aventurera are Carmen Salinas as Rosaura, Edith Gonzalez as Elena and Alejandro Tommasi as Jacaranda, a transvestite who becomes Elena´s confident at Rosaura´s nightclub. Also in the cast are Ernesto Gomez Cruz, Luis Felipe Tovar, Sergio Basanez and Ramiro Huerta. Choreographed by Jorge Becerril, Aventurera will feature 30 singers and dancers who will recreate the dances from the late 1940´s Mexican nightclubs.

For information and tickets call the Salon los Angeles at (5) 597 8847.

--By Claudio Carrera
Mexico Correspondent