Xiqu Centre, West Kowloon Cultural District | WestK Cabaret Festival: HisPanic – Copla: A Spanish Cabaret

Description

A celebration of an emotive Spanish musical tradition – brought to life through song, memory and defiant joy

“As a queer person and a migrant, I’ve always felt the tension between longing for home and wanting to break free of its expectations. By performing these songs, I’m both honouring the past and queering it. It’s a way to claim space for people like me within Spanish cultural memory.” — Alejandro Postigo

Alejandro Postigo’s award-winning Copla: A Spanish Cabaret is a poignant, intercultural reimagining of the heritage art of copla – the dramatic, heartfelt music that defined Spain’s early musicals and gave voice to marginalised experiences.

Through a seductive, celebratory blend of songs in Spanish and English, intimate personal storytelling, archival video projections and live accompaniment on piano and violin, Postigo weaves a tale of childhood memories, belonging, and the struggles of a queer migrant life.

Part musical performance, part confession, the show traces Postigo’s journey from Spain to England, and his path to reinterpreting copla traditions in his own voice. Drawing us in with movie clips of iconic divas and touching reminiscences with his centenarian grandmother, Postigo mixes crowd work, melodrama, humour and emotional honesty to deliver a cabaret that swings between camp spectacle and tender confession – opening hearts and reclaiming foreignness through music.