Cuban Ballet Welcomes Children and Young People Each Year

Like the graceful flight of a bird, the Cuban School of Ballet continues to add new students each year through its International Summer Workshop, whose 2025 edition concluded today at the National Theater.

The closing gala, which featured more than 150 students from various countries including the United States, began with a parade of all children and young participants from the workshop, followed by remarks from Miguel Cabrera, historian of the Cuban National Ballet (BNC). Cabrera recalled last year’s graduation in 2024, also held in the Covarrubias Hall of the prestigious cultural institution.

In his speech, Cabrera, a dance scholar and critic, highlighted milestones in the history of Cuba’s leading ballet company and congratulated the teachers who, as he said, share their knowledge with “so much love and dedication.”

Cabrera, who also heads the BNC’s Center for Documentation and Historical Research, reflected on the beginnings of the Cuban ballet tradition.

Seventy-five years ago, in 1950, Alicia and Fernando Alonso envisioned that building a Cuban ballet required granting free scholarships to talented children and youth who lacked the financial means to pursue such a demanding art form, he noted.

From the very start, those scholarships opened doors for new talent. Without them, there would have been no Loipa Araújo, Aurora Bosch, Josefina Méndez, or Mirta Plá, and no later generations such as Ramona de Saá, Margarita de Saá, and many outstanding male dancers, Cabrera emphasized.

He added that after the triumph of the Revolution, a National Arts Education System was created and remains active in all provinces. “For all that history, it is meaningful that we come together here today, in the midst of so much conflict in the world, to use dance as a bridge between art and friendship,” Cabrera concluded.

The event also paid tribute to Cuban women in recognition of the anniversary of their national organization, celebrated on Saturday, with flowers and honors presented to distinguished figures in Cuban dance and academic work.

The performances by the graduates began with the youngest students at the first and second levels, followed by elementary and advanced groups, along with a contemporary dance presentation.

The program also featured a fragment from the ballet Laurencia performed by advanced students, a jazz number set to Brazilian music, the first-act ballad from Coppélia by pre-professional intermediate and advanced dancers, and finally, the Talismán pas de deux with full corps de ballet.

The next International Summer Workshop will take place during the same season in 2026, once again adding to the talented ranks of the Cuban National Ballet.