Last April 16, we were not at the London Street of East Lane. But Chaplin returned with other geniuses on the date of his birth, only 132 years later. We saw him on the Internet at the premiere of the tribute concert Clownsicos, by Teatro Tuyo Company, which will soon be broadcast on television.

Las Tunas, Cuba.- From the beginning, music captivates us; speaks of nostalgia and sweetness to accompany five photos of mythical clowns: Ferdinando (Jiri Vrstala), Trompoloco (Edwin Fernández), Popov (Oleg Popov), Bip (Marcel Marceau), and -of course- Chaplin's Charlot. Each facial expression is a poem.

The curtain opens and there are the dreamers who pay tribute to those faces. First, we see the musicians: Clarissa Damila Pérez Hernández (violin and percussion), Carlos Manuel Fernández Castro (piano and keyboard), Carlos Enrique Díaz Ramírez (trombone, euphonium, tuba and double bass), and Ridel Meriño Rivero. The latter, besides playing instruments, is in charge of the orchestration, composition, and musical direction, with shocking arrangements. They welcome us to that journey, in which melodies merge with performance; while clowns from the past, embodied in young performers, appear in the empty theater (the Teatro Tuyo cultural center).

Little by little, a screen in the background projects images and significant data of the honorees. This is how the delivery and ingenuity of the Cuban Trompoloco come to the fore, while Ernesto Parra Borroto arrives with his interpretation of that teacher of the Cuban clown art. He is accompanied by Aixa Prowl Avilés, in her role as a credible rag doll.

The instrumentalists laugh; they know they are accomplices, participants in a beautiful setting since its very conception. Music is certainly a key here; as a character, it moves, enlivens and colors the scene. Hence passion.

Then the atmosphere darkens, is filled with mystery. Bip arrives in the body of Alejandro Batista Pupo. This young actor brings so much realism to the pantomime that one also thinks that is trapped inside an invisible prison box.

And musicians continue doing their thing, giving life to the scenes of the past, which already seem close to us, and in a certain way, they are. Bip is back, in the shoes of the same interpreter, dressed in a sailor's shirt and a hat with a flower on top, a characteristic costume. And we laugh at his alleged dance. Then, Ferdinando greets from the screen, and Parra speaks.

Now, "between the footlights" we receive Chaplin. We shudder again with fragments of anthological films. Alejandro returns to the court scene again. And there is Charlot, the popular tramp with exquisite manners, who with baggy pants, big shoes, bowler hat, and cane, and especially with his charisma and genius, became a symbol of silent movies and humor. He did not need words to express himself and Batista knows it, he transmits the humor of him with the challenge attached to him: exaggerated gestures, cadence, soul...

By the end, Popov, who was awarded a People's Artist of the former Union of Soviet Socialist Republics (USSR), emerges with high status. We see him on the background screen mastering sleight of hand, juggling, humor ... The spirit of the Russian comes to refresh almost at the close; it seems that he did not die at 86 years old and is still out there doing mischief. Parra gives him back to us, and one laughs while seeing him behind the light that moves at his whim across the stage, while he tries to keep her close to her, bread in hand. Sweet melancholy that melts with shadows to give way to the singer Eylen Rojas Santiago.

Then, students from the National Clown School appear, who cultivate the symbolic tree of noses, which does not stop bearing fruit, because the little ones from the Teatro Tuyo children's company arrive soon and together with Eylen they sing ... “Give me your hand my friend / I will give you my nose/dream of seeing you laugh and that way I will be happy.” There are sunflowers in the hands of children, tenderness, and hope in bloom.

A beautiful story told in each scene, vivid performances, exciting music, makeup, lights ..., everything fits like a puzzle to delight us. Seven workers of TunasVisión take over the audiovisual, under the direction of Dalgis Román Aguilera and Eddys Crespo Vargas. The idea, the script, and the general direction are by Ernesto Parra.

When "life is a play that does not allow rehearsals," as Chaplin said, how good is having artists who are not stopped by the darkness of a pandemic and always looking for a way to surprise us. The five honored classic clowns would be proud.