On Wednesday night, the renowned Cuban singer Omara Portuondo, aged 93, was carried off the stage at the Palau de la Música in Barcelona, Spain. Two members of the Orquesta Failde assisted her after she appeared confused from the very beginning of her performance.
Portuondo was scheduled to honor the iconic Buena Vista Social Club as part of the Cruïlla Tardor 2024 festival. She entered the stage seated in a chair, receiving an enthusiastic welcome from the audience chanting "Queen Omara!" However, confusion quickly set in when the singer managed to sing only a small portion of the chorus of "Lágrimas Negras" before falling silent, despite the orchestra continuing to play.
After several unsuccessful attempts by the musicians to encourage her to resume singing, Portuondo only managed to sing the line “Contigo me voy mi santa, aunque me cueste morir,” according to a report by the Spanish newspaper El País. Her inability to continue eventually led to her being escorted off stage amidst applause. During what was expected to be her farewell concert in Spain, some attendees shouted “Let her rest” and “Exploiters,” to which Ethiel Failde, director of the Orquesta Failde, responded.
“It is disrespectful to a legend; she herself asked to sing. Omara has always said she wants to die on stage,” Failde stated. Surprisingly, no images of the incident have surfaced on social media so far.
Audience Reaction and Aftermath
Many attendees left the venue before the event concluded, gathering at the doors of the Palau de la Música to demand refunds for their tickets, which in some cases were priced as high as 75 euros. Several formal complaints were filed, with some spectators expressing concerns about potential exploitation, given that Portuondo appeared visibly anxious and disoriented.
The Orquesta Failde, which had performed half a dozen songs before Omara took the stage, had promoted the concert as “a journey to the music of yesterday,” featuring a repertoire of classic Cuban songs such as "Chan chan," "Tiene sabor," "Dónde estabas tú," and "El manisero." On Instagram, Portuondo had posted, "Barcelona, here I am! I’ll see you tomorrow, October 2nd, at the Palau de la Música with the Orquesta Failde," alongside a photo of herself in Barcelona, with the two towers of Plaza España in the background.
Back on September 24th, Omara had performed a concert in Gran Canaria, where she appeared visibly tired and frail, as shown in a video shared by the Orquesta Failde on Instagram. As of the closing of this article, there is no available information on her health status on the legendary Cuban singer’s social media profiles.
The Cruïlla team announced that the artist had to leave the stage due to “health reasons” and promised to contact attendees to refund the cost of their tickets.