FOUNDER

Sage Lewis is a composer who has been active in Havana's music, film, and theater life for twenty years. After studying piano and percussion in Cuba as a teenager, and producing Cuban-American performance collaborations in his 20s, Sage was awarded the prestigious Sherwood Award by Center Theatre Group and commissioned to compose a song that was performed by American and Cuban children's choirs united through live video projections in Havana, Miami, and Los Angeles. Since then, Sage has produced numerous large-scale arts productions and cutting-edge cultural tours throughout Cuba for US artists, institutions, universities, and other groups. Sage also loves and specializes in Iceland and its music and has composed and recorded with Sinfonia Nord in Akureyri. When he's not traveling, Sage lives in Los Angeles with his wife and two daughters and composes music for film. TV. virtual reality. and brand campaigns. His scores can be heard on Netflix. HBO. Oculus, Amazon Prime, Spotify, and other platforms. Listen to Sage’s spotify here. sagelewismusic.com

PARTNER / PRODUCER

A native of Cuba with deep roots in the island, Al is a producer who has presented Cuban artists in the USA and American artists in Cuba for over thirty years and has been in the Cuba travel business for over 20 years. He co-founded Havana Light Neon + Signs, a historic preservation organization in Cuba to relight Havana's vintage neon signs. He was General Manager of the City of L.A.'s Department of Cultural Affairs for 12 years and President of the L.A. Cultural Affairs Commission for three years. He has also served as Trustee of LA Cite Dotiromont Commiccions and the President of the Sister Cities of Los Angeles Association. Al published Memoria: Cuban Art of the Twentieth Century, a definitive reference book of Cuban art of the period. He was the co-founder and producer of the Presencia Cuban Festival in Echo Park, L.A., for over twenty years. He is a committed neon sign preservationist having restored over a hundred historic signs in the City of Los Angeles and dozens in Havana.

ADMINISTRATOR / TOUR PRODUCER

Nadine is our newest addition to the Project Por Amor team. She covers admin, marketing, and is one of our U.S.-based liasons on tours. When not attending to PPA, Nadine freelances as a Spanish language interpreter, musician/songwriter, and spiritual director in the Los Angeles area. She earned her BA in Spanish Language and Culture and a Certificate in Interpreting. When asked how a Trinidad girl came to speak Spanish, she shares that she studied in Spain and lived in Oaxaca, Mexico where she discovered that communication was her superpower. She is a proud mama of four mostly grown children. In her spare time you’ll find her at the boxing gym, performing locally, watching whimsical movies, or finding beauty and laughter in the mundane.

CUBA TOUR GUIDE

Gretell graduated from the School of Foreign Languages at the University of Havana in English and French language in 2011. Since then, and for almost 10 years, she has put her skills to practice as a tour guide with Havanatur travel agency. Her duties include organizing activities, interpreting, being up-to date with Cuban history and culture, public relations, and meeting the expectations and needs of her travelers in all domains. Her friendly personality as well as her desire to work hard only makes her become more passionate about everv experience she provides. She has led tours for US senators, singers. art and jazz lovers, universities, entrepreneurs, and doctors. Gretell loves art in every form. Dance and music run in her Cuban blood. She is a fan of movies and in her free time she likes to photograph neon signs and the beauties of her Havana.

ICELAND TRAVEL ASSOCIATE

Rene Goifton came to the US from France in 1982 and built the critically lauded independent record company Harmonia Mundi USA. Goitton's longtime interests in music and traveling led him to create World Village, a subsidiary label of harmonia mundi that releases world music albums. Both harmonia mundi and World Village have received multiple Awards and Grammy nominations. He is married to Grammy Award-winning classica producer Robina Young. He has traveled several times to Iceland where he became familiar with most of the people and places listed in the itinerary.

ICELAND TOUR GUIDE

Thor Tulinius is a well-seasoned actor and director of theatre having performed in over 50 theatre productions for the Reykjavik City Theatre, The National Theatre of Iceland, and various professional theatre groups. He also founded his own theatre company, Thibilja, in 1989 and a second one, Svipir, in 2009, which is still producing plays either directed, acted or written by Thor. In 2013 Thor added a master‘s degree in Creative Writing to his curriculum and his children‘s play, The Good Spirit of the Mounts is being produced as we speak. Also, an extraordinary trilingual tour guide, taking his first group around Iceland in 1977, then only 18 years old, Thor tells stories of the sagas and legends, explains and discusses many aspects of Icelandic life and economics, and executes an impeccable program.