El Canuto del Rock was created and performed by Quique Avilés, a treasured 60-plus-year-old Salvadoran rocker who happens to be a DC-based poet, performer, and community activist dedicated to addressing social issues through the arts. What’s not to love? The prospect of an older, seasoned rock lover getting back in the saddle is intriguing enough. That it is a world premiere by beloved poet/artist/performer Quique Avilés made it a treasure. This third episode of a trilogy from the creative mind of Avilés as Don Amadeo finds the elder music lover reflecting on how rock and roll changed and shaped his life. He recaps major events and memories from the first two episodes about how a young Don Ama, who grew up in the countryside of El Salvador, heard an electric guitar for the first time when on a visit to his grandmother in the city, and it literally rocked his world. While the harsh realities of rural life in the fields kept him from his dream of becoming a rock star, his passion never left him, and he eventually became a rock ’n roll disc jockey at a music station in the country. His El Canuto del Rock (The Rock Joint) created a rock ’n roll sensation in the countryside, and he even traveled the world as a global ambassador for “rock del campo” — rock from the countryside. Now, in the third and final chapter, Don Ama is an elder whose life has taken many turns with love and loss, much based on Avilés’ actual experiences. Quique Avilés as Don Amadeo. Photo courtesy of the artist. Sporting a huge white sombrero, Don Ama introduces Guns N’ Roses, Led Zeppelin, and, of course, Hendrix to his burgeoning fans. Avilés brings all the characters to life with poetic descriptions as he recounts his experiences. Don Ama explains that a near-deadly machete fight mangled his fingers too much to play guitar, but nothing quelled his love for the music or his obsession with sharing it. In the most touching passages, as Don Ama, Avilés relays that his beloved wife Bernardo died much too soon, leaving him bereft. It was the prospect of re-creating the early rock band that drew him out of his staggering grief. Quique Avilés was my conduit touchstone back in the ’90s when I was introduced to the Salvadoran community and the artists interconnecting with the African American scene. We learn from the show that the largest percentage of Latinos in the Washington, DC, Metro area have roots in El Salvador. So much history was included in creating this new production, including the return to the actual site, the “room where it happened,” rooted and nurtured at GALA back in the 1990s. Fresh out of the Duke Ellington School of the Arts, Avilés teamed with GALA’s founders Hugo and Rebecca Medrano and Abel Lopez and others to lay the seeds for a Salvadorean-based rock musical inspired by personal events, cultural happenings, and vivid imagination. The show reunites original rockers from the early days and features DC’s own Salvadoran punk-rock Machetres. The band fills the set with raucous songs with absolute delight. Lead guitarist Lilo González evokes heavy metal and has all the mannerisms, undulating hips, and knockout hair to match any headbanger around. Paul González on bass keeps solid thrusting rhythms along with drummer Christian Gajardo, who also adds harmonic vocals, while Cherie Latson’s fabulous voice cascades octaves in full force. They are a blast. The nicely designed DJ booth by Fredy Avilés Molina allows Don Ama to tuck behind with his turntables and do his thing. Halley LaRoe’s projections and GALA’s video, narrated by Arnoldo Ramos, blend beautifully to expand the scenes and enhance the stories. In one segment, Don Ama convinces a farmer to allow his adolescent son, a young bright-eyed Janito, to live with him and have better opportunities than on the farm. The camera frames only the men’s hands as they converse and navigate the possibilities and consequences with movements that speak wonders. In a touching followup years later, the “adopted son” Janito brings the elder Don Ama to the coast for his first look at the ocean. Avilés’ poetry describes the taste of salt in the air and the foaming white waves as the camera shows the backs of the older and younger men walking together in the sand in wonder. El Canuto del Rock is a masterwork that speaks volumes about the history, legacy, heart, and soul of DC artists and their impact around the world. Quique Avilés is a griot sharing his stories with spoken word poetry. He speaks with touching authenticity, sharing aspects of his life and culture with heart and the funky downbeat of rock and roll. While the show is described as his final solo performance, we can only hope and dream that Quique Avilés’ El Canuto del Rock will resurface as a rich legacy in some form in the future with an expanded run for the world to experience. There’s nothing like it. Running Time: Approximately 90 minutes with no intermission. El Canuto del Rock (The Rock Joint) played December 13 to 15, 2024, at GALA Hispanic Theatre, 3333 14th Street NW, Washington, DC. CAST Quique Avilés as Don Amadeo Cherie Latson: Vocalist Lilo González: Guitarist Christian Gajardo: Drummer Paul González:Bassist PRODUCTION DESIGN Creator: Quique Avilés Director: B. Stanley Production Manager: Ilyana Rose-Dávila Production Manager for El Canuto del Rock: Luz Nicolás Company Manager: Camilo Montoya Artistic Production Associate: Delbis Cardona Technical Director and Master Carpenter: Jon Townson Set Designer and Associate Carpenter: Fredy Avilés Molina Lighting Designer: Alberto Segarro Projections Designer: Hailey LaRoe Master Electrician: Jay Broadnax Carpenters: Jerrell Shepherd, Mike Lancios, Grace Morales Light Operator: Alex Rojas Sound Engineer: Shyloh-Symone Bailey A1/Soundboard Operator: Daniel Interiano Videos by GALA Hispanic Theatre Narrator: Arnoldo Ramos Photos provided by Avilés Family Archives Hand drawings by Charlotte Stanley Video and Sound Production by Camilo Montoya & Miguel Castro