Antonio Banderas, to the OT finalists: “The worst enemy of success is the anxiety to achieve it”

This February 19 is the grand final of OT 2023 and the excitement for the thousands of fans who have become hooked on the talent is served. The format presented by Chenoa, via streaming from Amazon Prime Video, closes the curtain with a final in which Juanjo, Naiara, Paul Thin, Ruslana, Lucas y Martin They compete for the long-awaited podium after twelve weeks confined to the Academy and shining in weekly galas that the faithful followers have enjoyed with devotion.

This Saturday, with nerves on edge, the kids received a visit from Antonio Banderas at the Academy, a moment they will never forget. The man from Malaga was close to the boys and, although he confessed that he had not followed the editing (because these weeks he has been in New York filming a film with Nicole Kidman), he did share his passion for musical theater with the contestants and gave them some advice.

Melanie Griffith's ex revealed to the six finalists what made him end up choosing acting: “My mother and father were very fond of the theater, and when we were little they took my brother and me to the Cervantes in Malaga, where the companies from Madrid came. For me it was an absolute revelation to see that almost religious ritual that the actors performed. It seemed to me an extraordinary act of civilization, to have a group of people willing to participate in a game, a tacit agreement between those who tell and those who listen. And there were pieces of life, of learning, of characters who were talking to me about things that I did not yet know at all levels.: of love, of heartbreak, of betrayal, of passion, of loyalties, of a thousand things that were part of life and that were being inserted into that almost religious ritual that was theater.”

Antonio confessed to them that in the 70s there were two great productions that impressed him: “One was Godspellwhich was made in the year 74 with Juan Ribó in the lead, playing the character of Jesus, and later came Hair. And it was a groundbreaking musical that challenged everything established and went a little outside the box, where people appeared naked under a parachute. However, he passed the censorship and I saw him in the year 76. And he arrived in Malaga.” That was a revelation for the actor. “I said: I have to go to that side of the mirror, I want to be one one of those that is behind there. It was that magical, almost religious thing that theater has, and musical theater with more power. And I fell in love with that genre. And in the end I have been traveling around the world and making films and I have returned to my roots, to my land, to make that type of musical shows. But I'm not a singer, I use my voice as another weapon,” he stressed. As an example of his passion for musical theater, Antonio told the boys that in a few days he will be in Madrid auditioning more of a thousand people, because he already has two new productions in mind that he is going to put forward: “I am going to do two musicals Playing our song y Gypsy“.

Antonio took advantage of his visit to the Academy and told them that “error is also beautiful”and recalled the importance that art will have when it comes to forging your personality: “You have to be aware of one important thing that has been important to me: the love of art, music, theater, cinema will make you not only millionaires or celebrities, but also people with a lot of personality. Art invites deep reflection and that is very important nowadays because there is a kind of tendency on the part of those who hold power to manipulate. And art makes people not manipulable, it makes them stronger. It helps generate and solidify personalities. And that goes for both artists and those who participate in art. That's why art must always be promoted, because it is the heart of a country,” he told the kids. In addition, he gave them one last piece of advice that they should burn into themselves.: “The worst enemy of success is the anxiety to achieve it. That cannot be the objective. The best thing is the enjoyment of what you do. And the important thing is the search for the truth”.