Fado Night at Centro Romeu Cascaes Fri. 11/21/2025

The Centro Romeu Cascaes Portuguese American Community Center (CRC) in Harrison will host a classic Noite de Fados on Friday, November 21, 2025, at 7:30 p.m., headlined by fadista Emanuel Soares, accompanied by Lico Cordeone on guitarra portuguesa (12-string Portuguese guitar) and Francisco Chuva on viola (Portuguese classical guitar). Dinner will be served, paired with Portuguese wine and sangria. Tickets are $80 and must be purchased in advance. Seating is limited, and no tickets will be sold at the door.

What to expect

Fado is Portugal’s soul music—intimate, acoustic, and storytelling at its core. The singer’s voice weaves through the bright filigree of the Portuguese guitar and the warm pulse of the viola, carrying themes of longing and love often summed up by the uniquely Portuguese feeling of saudade. Recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage, fado traces to 19th-century Lisbon and is revered across the diaspora, from Newark’s Ironbound to Portuguese clubs throughout North America.

The Artists

Emanuel Soares (Fadista)
A respected voice on the fado circuit, Soares has performed widely in Portuguese communities, including noted debuts in New Jersey. Reports from the Portuguese-American press spotlight his Newark performances and collaborations with established accompanists, underscoring a traditional repertoire that blends classics with newer work—performances documented on FadoTV and other outlets.

Lico Cordeone (Portuguese Guitar)
Also known as Loïc Da Silva (“Cordeone”), he is a New York-based, award-winning multi-instrumentalist whose artistic signature includes the guitarra portuguesa. His official materials note performances in respected Lisbon fado houses and collaborations with leading musicians, as well as ongoing traditional fado projects in the U.S.A.

Francisco Chuva (Viola de Fado)
Born in Ericeira, Portugal, Chuva began singing and playing fado as a teenager before focusing on the viola (the steel-string classical guitar that anchors fado rhythm and harmony). He has appeared frequently with visiting and local fadistas.

About the Centro Romeu Cascaes (CRC)

CRC is a cultural anchor for Harrison’s Portuguese-American community. The center’s own history recounts roots in late-1980s community organizing led by the late Romeu Cascaes, culminating in a dedicated home in the early 1990s. Beyond music nights, CRC hosts weekly meals, language and heritage activities, and community events that welcome neighbors of all backgrounds.

Fado in simple terms

Think of fado as poetry you can hear: a singer, a 12-string Portuguese guitar, and a viola, telling stories of everyday life with unmistakable emotion. Listeners are part of the performance—hushed rooms, attentive audiences—and the music often evokes saudade, that bittersweet mix of longing and memory familiar to immigrants and their descendants throughout the United States.

Ticketing: $80, pre-purchase only; limited seating; no door sales.
(Dinner, Portuguese wine, and sangria included with the performance.)

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