FEBRUARY 22 • 2024 | 41

someone told him, ‘You 
should learn ‘Hava Nagila’ 
— that’s gonna bring you a 
whole new market. So we 
did that and the jobs started 
coming.”
The Estefans have an even 
tighter connection now; 
their son Nayib is married to 
a Jewish woman, and their 
grandson is being raised 
in both faiths. “He’s being 
raised knowing his culture, 
that being Jewish isn’t just a 
religion, it’s a culture, too,” 
Estefan says. 
“We’re making sure that 
he knows the traditions 
and celebrates those special 
moments in both. I think 
family is extremely important 
to both our cultures. The 
traditions should be held in 
high regard, celebrated and 
continued throughout our 
lives. 
“Family is one of the most 
beautiful things we can share 
because in every culture 
families are probably the 
most important things in our 
lives and what we share as 
human beings.”
And, Estefan adds with a 
laugh, “Cuban mothers and 
Jewish mothers have a lot in 
common, I think. Guilt plays 

a big part in 
all of it.”
Family 
is certainly 
one of the 
themes in 
On Your Feet! especially since 
Estefan had to convince hers 
— which emigrated from 
Cuba after the revolution 
there in 1959 — to allow 
her to pursue a career in 
music and also to accept her 
relationship with Emilio. 
Ultimately, she says, the 
jukebox assemblage of 
familiar songs and its soaring 
production numbers delivers 
“a message of love. It’s a love 
story — obviously a personal 
one between Emilio and me. 
It’s also a love story about 
the native country where we 
were born (Cuba) and the 
adopted country (America) 
that opened its arms to us. 
“It’s a love story to the 
American Dream because we 
lived it. And it’s a love story, 
obviously, to the music.”
The Estefans have sold 
more than 100 million 
albums worldwide of that 
music, both with Miami 
Sound Machine and Gloria’s 
solo efforts and including 
hits such as “Coming Out 

of the Dark,” “Get On Your 
Feet” and “Don’t Wanna 
Lose You.” Estefan has won 
three Grammy Awards since 
1989, and five Latin Grammy 
Awards. 
The Estefans were first 
approached about a musical 
nearly 30 years ago, though 
it was not biographical. 
They felt it was “premature” 
but kept the 
proverbial 
door open, and 
the right time 
came in 2012 
when Broadway 
producer Bernie 
Yuman pitched 
the idea to the 
couple. On Your 
Feet! premiered 
three years later in Chicago 
and then on Broadway, 
winning an Outer Critics 
Circle Award for Outstanding 
Choreographer (Sergio 
Trujillo) and scoring a Tony 
nod for Best Choreography. 
“Everything happened 
quickly,” says Estefan, who 
wrote one new song, “If I 
Never Got To Tell You,” for 

the show with her daughter 
Emily. “The universe really 
conspired to help us. It’s not 
like Emilio and I said, ‘Let’s 
do a Broadway show!’ It’s 
a risky thing to do, but I’m 
thrilled with how well it’s 
done.”
The Estefans remain active 
as On Your Feet! tours the 
world, while Gloria and her 
daughter are “neck deep 
in production” for another 
musical, this one based on 
the Recycled Orchestra of 
Cateura in Paraguay. It’s not 
quite as “easy” of a sell as 
the hit-filled On Your Feet! 
but Estefan is enjoying the 
adventure. 
“Y’know, everything that’s 
happened in my life feels 
like it was destiny,” she says. 
“I met Emilio by accident. I 
joined his band for fun. Then 
we fell in love and the career 
started to get bigger ... It was 
all a very natural progression. 
Everything has just evolved 
and grown, and my fans have 
allowed me to evolve and 
grow with my music. I’m 
truly blessed.” 

DETAILS
On Your Feet! runs at 
2:30 p.m. Saturday, 
Feb. 24, at the 
Fox Theatre, 2211 
Woodward Ave., 
Detroit. (313) 471-7000 
or 313Presents.com.

A scene 
from On 
Your Feet!

DOUG-HINEBAUGH
DJ-COREY

Ensemble 
cast of On 
Your Feet! 

