PINECREST GARDENS, Fla. – The queen of salsa, Celia Cruz, was not only a music legend, but also a symbol of resilience, leaving Cuba after Fidel Castro’s rise to power and never returning.
Now Pinecrest Gardens is honoring her incredible legacy with a special celebration, marking what would have been her 100th birthday.
Fans can now experience her journey through treasures from her life, from photos to dazzling costumes.
“In these first set of photos, she’s photographed at her first communion with her mother and her cousins,” Pinecrest Gardens Executive Director Cristina Blanco told Local 10′s Alexis Frazier as she showed her some of the items on display.
Cruz’s shoes will also be on display, which were custom-made so she could be able to stand for hours.
“This was the time when there were variety shows, where people would be coming on and off stage,” Blanco explained. “She was dancing and standing. These shoes supported her.”
Every detail celebrates her extraordinary career, like a 19-minute archival video from Cruz’s estate, showing her rise during the 1950s and 60s.
“Which is the period that she joined La Sonora Matancera. That band came together with an afro-Cuban woman as the lead vocalist at a time that that was a male-dominated space,” Blanco said.
To celebrate her music, Cuban singer Lucrecia will headline the weekend concert series at the Banyan Bowl Amphitheater, performing alongside the Celia Cruz All Stars.
Born to a Haitian mother and a Cuban father, Cruz grew up in Havana.
Her voice became a symbol of freedom and an act of defiance against the Cuban government, inspiring Cuban exiles worldwide.
The three-night centennial concert series kicks off Friday night. Tickets range from $40 to $45. And if you’d like to see the Celia Cruz exhibition, you can check it out for just $5, which also includes your admission to the garden.
Click here for more information and to purchase tickets.