Dreams on pointe
A group of young girls, ranging in age from 6 through 8, form a line before a classical ballet session at the National Ballet headquarters.
Every little girl in Cuba shares the same dream: to become a ballerina. Thanks to a long-ago promise by the Cuban government that making classical ballet accessible to the public, and the talents of the National Ballet of Cuba founder Alicia Alonso, that dream can come true, writes Mar Roman
The dance studio is hot and muggy, but the aspiring National Ballet of Cuba dancers don't seem to notice as they twirl and jete with scrupulous precision to the beat of the piano.
Only a few of the dancers will be selected to perform the next "Sleeping Beauty" or "Cinderella" at Havana's elegant Gran Teatro, but that doesn't dim their enthusiasm. All remain hopeful, giving each class and rehearsal all they've got, secretly hoping that it's the girl next to them who doesn't make the cut.
Top dancer Viengsay Valdes made the cut, living proof that dreams do come true. "My childhood dream was to be a ballerina, just like any Cuban girl," says the 26-year-old.
After donning her first pair of ballet slippers at 9, Valdes went on to become one of the few top ballet dancers in a country whose ballet company is among the world's best and where masses, not the elite, are the true classical dance aficionados.
As Valdes leaves the studio, dozens of girls between 5 and 8 years old file into the room in their colorful leotards, forming lines to await their first ballet steps - and their first taste of the discipline that classical dance requires.
The popularity of ballet in Cuba is only natural, Valdes postulates. "Because dancing is part of our culture," she says, referring to the island's mix of African and Spanish roots.
The government-funded classical dance program is world-class, training dancers for a company that has performed in 58 countries and received about 300 international awards.
Founded by Cuba's living ballet legend Alicia Alonso in 1948, the National Ballet has managed to forge its own style from ballet's two major techniques, the Russian and the British.
Alonso, an 82-year-old former prima ballerina, retains a strong grip over the company, even though she now has trouble moving and can barely see.
A familiar figure with her proud, turban-wrapped head and wide mouth, Alonso built Cuba's classical dance program from the ground, training several generations of dancers who quickly became some of the most sought- after in the world.
After having been the company's director, choreographer and teacher, Alonso still decides what the dancers will wear, who will go abroad, with whom they will dance and what role they will dance.
And since the beginning, she has done it with the support of Cuban President Fidel Castro and his government.
"After the revolution triumphed in 1959, Castro knocked on Alonso's door to offer the new government's help. He promised that he would make (ballet) available to all social classes," said Miguel Cabrera, ballet school historian.
"The government paid for everything from the building to rehearsals, salaries and ballet shoes," Cabrera added.
Government support has been important in making ballet a prestigious occupation. As a top dancer, Valdes receives a government salary similar to that of an important scientist or doctor: about 600 Cuban pesos (US$25) a month.
She has toured with the Cuban ballet and as a guest with foreign companies, giving part of her foreign earnings to the government.
"Now my target is to achieve international recognition," says Valdes. "But no matter what I do, I will always be linked to this ballet and to my country."
(The Associated Press)