World Ballet Festival underway in Havana
Campaign News | Monday, 30 October 2006
Dancers from around the world including UK descend on Cuban capital
Havana, Oct 30 (ACN) Presided by the prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso, the 20th International Ballet Festival of Havana opened with a gala to honor the 250th anniversary of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart's birth.
The National Ballet of Cuba (BNC) staged the opening performance plus the premiere of Alonso's Mozart Divertimento, especially devoted to the magnificent Austrian composer.
This year, the ballet festival will be hosted by different cities of the country, besides its traditional venues in Havana. Theaters in the central provinces of Matanzas and Cienfuegos will serve as venues for the 2006 festival.
The Cuban audience will be able to enjoy world dancers such as Argentinean Julio Bocca and Maximiliano Guerra, Russian Natalia Osipova, and Italian Carla Fracci, who is premiering Desnuda luz del amor (Naked Light of Love), especially created for her by Alonso.
Also attending the event ending November 6 are the companies Farruquito y familia (Spain); Cisne Negro (Brazil); soloists of the Magdeburgo Ballet (Germany), Bolshoi Ballet (Russia), Royal Danish Ballet (Denmark) and London s Royal Ballet (UK).
Moreover, the BNC director will launch an exhibition of outstanding Cuban painters Roberto Fabelo, Alfredo Sosabravo and Zayda del Rio, among others.
There festival includes an international ballet course for professionals and students, the screening of movies and photo exhibits.
http://www.ain.cubaweb.cu/idioma/ingles/2006/oct30festivalballet.htm
