A Café Mezclao with Marcia Brito = Botica Francesa
A special edition of «Café Mezclao» dedicated to Marcia Brito Hernández took place in this torrid June, incorporating the warm message of those of us who admire the director of the Matanzas Pharmaceutical Museum, as confirmed by host Alfredo Zaldívar, National Editing Prize, at the UNEAC social house.
The Botica Francesa (French Apothecary) in Marcia’s hands became not only a museum, thanks to the donation by Dr. Ernesto Triolet, but also a home for the arts and literature, for medical and pharmacological sciences, and a showcase of our culture in general for Cuban and foreign visitors.
National Dance Prize 2026 winner Liliam Padrón danced for the guest, to the melody of Olga Margarita Muñoz and the guitar chords of Mario Guerrero.
When the moment came for the interview with the radiant Marcia by writer and journalist Maylan Álvarez, attendees learned about her beginnings as director of this heritage jewel, unique in the world.
They learned about her daily presence at the institution for these 44 years, her fraternal feelings toward her staff, her daily battle for preservation after a meritorious restoration, together with her absolute interaction with her family, her husband, and her son who grew up among glass and porcelain bottles.
The people of Matanzas are grateful for her dedication and the way she welcomes artists, writers, and a public that loves diverse artistic expressions, in events that have fostered premieres, artistic gatherings, and recitals.
The prominent poet Alejo Galván, who worked for many years at that institution as a keeper of pieces, lamps, shelves, and doors, was remembered.
Marcia Brito was asked about the pharmacy’s ghosts. «They don’t exist,» she said, «but there is the latent energy of the founders, which manifests for some people in small movements, lights, noises, or mysterious ‘things that happen.'»
The group Hénosis performed, an artistic-musical project composed of two singers and three instrumentalists, all young, who displayed harmony and good rhythm in their interpretations.
Also present were Noslén González, provincial deputy director of Culture; artists Annerys Cánovas and Dr. José Antonio Méndez Valencia; as well as members of the UNEAC Presidency, Leo Ernesto García Ramos and Leymen Pérez.
As always in the «Café Mezclao» space, there were laughter, applause, raffles of books and magazines from Ediciones Matanzas, and this time even chocolates and coffee were sold.
