On Your Feet!

Chicago

The musical had its world premiere at the Oriental Theatre in Chicago from June 2, 2015 to July 5, 2015, directed by Jerry Mitchell and choreographed by Sergio Trujillo. The cast featured Ana Villafañe as Gloria and Josh Segarra as Emilio.

Broadway

Previews began on October 5, 2015 at the Marquis Theatre, with Mitchell and Trujillo as director and choreographer. The musical officially opened on November 5, 2015. The opening cast of 31 performers was led by Villafañe as Gloria, Segarra as Emilio, Andréa Burns as Gloria's mother, Alma Cuervo as Gloria's grandmother, Alexandria Suarez as Little Gloria and Eduardo Hernandez as Young Emilio. Designers include David Rockwell (sets), Emilio "Esosa" Sosa (costumes) and Kenneth Posner (lighting). In July 2016, Puerto Rican singer and actor Ektor Rivera replaced Segarra as Emilio. The show has performed for two of the Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parades in 2015 and 2016. The cast along with Gloria Estefan herself, performed at the NYE Show in Times Square December 31st, 2016. The production celebrated 500 performances on January 19, 2017.

Netherlands

The first production outside America will start on October 17, 2017 in the Netherlands. It will be produced by Stage Entertainment and will play at the Beatrix Theater in Utrecht, with performances scheduled up to the February 28, 2018.

US Tour

A US tour will begin in 2017, premiering in Miami, Florida on October 5, 2017. Emilio and Gloria Estefan announced the tour at a press event in Miami on February 6, 2017. Christie Prades, the Broadway understudy for "Gloria" has been announced to play the lead role on the tour.

Act I

Act I opens at a Gloria Estefan concert in 1990. What follows is a flashback, where we see Gloria growing up in the Little Havana neighborhood of Miami. As time progresses, Gloria is introduced to Emilio Estefan by her abuela (grandmother), who is the leader of the (then-called) Miami Latin Boys. Gloria, who is studying to be a psychologist and spending most of her extra time caring for her father through his battle with Multiple Sclerosis, is initially resistant to the idea of performing. But her abuela persuades her to follow her passion for music.

Despite Gloria's reluctance to be fully in the public spotlight, she and Emilio work to achieve success with an innovative commercial blend of Cuban and American music styles, in both Spanish and English. Their partnership blossoms into romance. They struggle against the pre-conceived notions of their record label and the radio stations, who doubt the appeal of their music to the general American public, but they win the day with the release of their infectious pop hit "Conga".

Act II

Gloria and Emilio hit the top of the music charts and launch a worldwide tour. Yet Gloria struggles with the exhausting schedule, and the fact that her mother has become estranged due to her disapproval (and potential jealousy) of Gloria's fame. On the road, the Estefans' bus collides with a semi truck during a snowstorm. Gloria breaks her back in the accident, and is flown to NYC for emergency spinal surgery. Doctors tell her she may never walk again, but she dedicates herself to rehabilitation, and reconciles with her mother. Thousands of fan letters, and Emilio's steadfast determination, provide her the encouragement she needs to get back on her feet. Gloria makes a triumphant return to the stage with her performance of "Coming Out of The Dark" at the 1991 American Music Awards.

Musical numbers

† Not included in the cast recording.

‡ Original song written for the show by Gloria Estefan (lyrics) and Emily Estefan (music).

Broadway Cast Replacement History

Critical response

In his review for The New York Times, Charles Isherwood wrote that "the recipe may be familiar, but the flavor is fresh in this undeniably crowd-pleasing musical." "Starring a vibrant Ana Villafañe as Ms. Estefan and a commanding Josh Segarra as her husband and musical collaborator, the musical neatly showcases the boppy dance-floor hits and swoony ballads that made Ms. Estefan and the band Miami Sound Machine a radio and MTV staple in the 1980s... 'On Your Feet!' roars through the up-tempo numbers, choreographed with swirling skirts and swiveling hips by Sergio Trujillo. The very air in the room seems to vibrate when the crackerjack band strikes up. But with an often mechanical book, moving through its rags-to-riches paces as if to a rigid percussive beat, 'On Your Feet!' ultimately falls somewhere in the middle of the hefty pack of jukebox musicals that have plugged in to Broadway's power strip."

David Rooney, in his review for The Hollywood Reporter, wrote, "Just try keeping the grin off your face when two massive human chains—of cast and audience members—flood the aisles of the Marquis Theatre... Charting the rise to international superstardom of Gloria Estefan, and her triumphant re-emergence after near-tragedy struck, On Your Feet! is an infectious account of the lives and careers of the Latin music crossover sensations... featuring a star-making lead performance from radiant newcomer Ana Villafane. It's impossible to deny the production's generosity of spirit.... the story is packed with heart, above all in its tender depiction of the couple's sustaining love. And there's such genuine joy — plus a refreshing suggestion of modesty — in the telling of this Cuban-American success story. The show's arrival at a historic point in the renewal of diplomatic ties between Cuba and the U.S. makes its timing serendipitous."

Peter Marks, in his review for The Washington Post wrote "The buoyant Estefan songs... are rolled out with carbonated flair by director Jerry Mitchell and choreographer Sergio Trujillo. In the guise, too, of actor-singers Ana Villafañe and Josh Segarra, the redoubtable Estefans are evoked here with the requisite sexiness and effervescence; the book by Alexander Dinelaris...conveys vivaciously that theirs is a partnership in every sense....takes its place in the upper echelons of the jukebox genre..."

Box Office

The New York Times reported, following the musical's first week of preview performances, "On Your Feet!, a jukebox musical about Gloria and Emilio Estefan, barrelled onto Broadway last week, grossing $970,013 in its first seven preview performances and suggesting that the show might be the first new hit since Hamilton." In December, the newspaper followed up with a report that the show was continuing to flourish at the box office in spite of a divisive presidential election season, "Immigration may be polarizing as a political issue, but on Broadway the immigrant stories are doing quite well...On Your Feet!, the new musical about Gloria and Emilio Estefan's journey from anonymity in Cuba to stardom in the United States, had its strongest showing yet last week, grossing $1,331,812. That production is now consistently among the top-grossing shows on Broadway, behind only Hamilton among works that opened this season."

Playbill noted, in the musical's first week in November 2015, " 'On Your Feet!' which won good reviews last week, saw a leap of $123,518 and played to houses that were at 96% capacity..."