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The creative team has been announced for the world premiere production of BASURA, a new musical with music and lyrics by Gloria Estefan and Emily Estefan, premiering at the Alliance Theatre in Summer 2026. The production will feature scenic design by four-time Tony Award nominee David Korins, costume design by Tony Award winner Dede Ayite, lighting design by five-time Tony Award nominee Ben Stanton, and sound design by Tony Award Winner Peter Hylenski. Victoria Navarro will serve as the Production Stage Manager.
“From the very beginning we set out to surround this uplifting musical with the most passionate and talented creatives in our industry.” said the producers. “We are thrilled that these award-winning designers will be working with us to bring this story and the authentic world of BASURA to life on stage. Their collective artistry will perfectly capture the ingenuity and heart that define the Recycled Orchestra of Cateura.”
As previously announced, BASURA will be directed by the Broadway stage visionary and five-time Tony Award nominee Michael Greif (Rent, Dear Evan Hansen), written by National Latino Playwriting Award-winner Karen Zacarías (Native Gardens, Destiny of Desire). Grammy Award® and Tony Award® winner Alex Lacamoire (Hamilton, In the Heights) is the musical supervisor, orchestrator, and arranger. Tony Award® winner Patricia Delgado (Buena Vista Social Club) will choreograph, Ken Cerniglia (Hadestown, Newsies) serves as dramaturg, Cynthia Meng (Dead Outlaw) will serve as Music Director, Andy Señor Jr. will serve as Associate Director and Casting is by Kristian Charbonier, CSA for The Telsey Office. Casting Director for Alliance Theatre is Jody Feldman.
Performances of BASURA will begin on Friday, May 30, 2026 at the Alliance Theatre’s Coca-Cola Stage (1280 Peachtree Street NE) in Atlanta, GA. Tickets are now on sale for the World-Premiere production, which is set to play through July 12, 2026. A private developmental reading of the musical will be held in New York in December 2025.
Ten-time Grammy Award winner Gloria Estefan — whose music has sold over 100 million records worldwide — has shaped generations through song. Now, she joins her daughter and acclaimed singer-songwriter, Grammy Award nominee Emily Estefan, to co-write the music and lyrics for BASURA, a powerful and bold new musical inspired by the true story of Paraguay’s Recycled Orchestra, where young artists turn scrap material into instruments and music into possibilities. This world premiere musical continues Estefan’s global legacy — proving that music can rise from anywhere and change everything.
What do you do when the world gives you nothing? You build something beautiful. In a community against all odds, an inspired music teacher starts an orchestra for the students, but they have no instruments. Empty paint cans, a fork, and a bent license plate become a violin, an oil drum transforms into a colorful cello, and the newly formed orchestra hits every note to the beat of something bigger. When the students’ instruments become symbols of possibility, the sound is heard around the world.
Based on the award-winning documentary film “Landfill Harmonic,” the new musical carries the sound of Paraguay’s Recycled Orchestra farther than anyone could have ever imagined. BASURA is an unforgettable journey of rhythm, resilience, and extraordinary music — a radiant, heart-swelling reminder that even in the most unlikely places, you can build something beautiful.
“This is a story that has been close to my heart for several years since I first encountered the determination and ingenuity of the young people of Paraguay’s Recycled Orchestra,” said Gloria Estefan in the previous announcement. “Emily and I are thrilled for our music to be a part of telling their story in this original musical. We could not be more excited for BASURA to begin its theatrical life in a city as influential and diverse as Atlanta with a theater as consequential as the Alliance.”
