Petravalentine

<p><strong>Written by </strong><strong>Migdia Chinea</strong></p> <p><strong>Inspired by a real historical figure, this is the allegory of Yarini, a mysterious and powerful pimp who dominates Havana in 1910, a time when Halley&rsquo;s Comet is passing through.&nbsp; &nbsp;When Yarini falls for the President&rsquo;s wife, his childhood sweetheart, Manto, a mulatta who loves him, uses Afro-Cuban religion Santeria to get him back.&nbsp; But she is warned that she can&rsquo;t call on the African saints to do harm because doing so can have bad consequences.&nbsp; &nbsp;When Manto&rsquo;s plan backfires, she changes the course of events. </strong></p> <p><strong>In 1910, Havana flourished as the new frontier for the European elite. Its harbor was &ldquo;La Llave,&rdquo; the key port of entry to the New World.</strong></p> <p><strong>Drawn to its natural splendor, and unlimited resources, nobility, industrialists and people &ldquo;with a past&rdquo; come to its shores, seeking new opportunities or to reinvent themselves.&nbsp; The settlers, French, British and mostly Spanish colonialists imbued the city with all the creature comforts from their native homes.</strong></p> <p><strong>But there was another element that set this world apart from theirs and that was the influx of Africans.&nbsp; Unlike North America, something different occurred in Havana.&nbsp; African culture with its wonderfully earth-bound rituals and unusual rhythms slowly infiltrated the upper echelons of society, until it was embraced, almost unconsciously.&nbsp; During this time, one man rose to great power.&nbsp; His name was Yarini, &ldquo;the Pimp of San Isidro.&rdquo;&nbsp; During his ten-year reign, he brought inexorable joy to many, but to others he presented a great threat.&nbsp; In a story based on the myth of the man, Yarini, the women he loved, and the beautiful city of Havana.</strong></p> <p><strong>With the passing of Yarini also passed the end of a great era.&nbsp; </strong></p> <p><strong>&ldquo;Old Havana and the Great Pimp of San Isidro&rdquo;.</strong></p>