[1/5] Ballet dancers react backstage as they perform “Giselle” during the 27th Alicia Alonso International Ballet Festival of Havana, at the National Theatre, in Havana, Cuba, October 30, 2022. REUTERS/Alexandre Meneghini
HAVANA, Nov 18 (Reuters) – Cuba’s National Ballet, founded in 1948 in Havana, became a pet project of Fidel Castro’s 1959 revolution. Castro gave aspiring dancers free training, underwrote the companies’ infrastructure, and cemented the national ballet’s reputation for beauty and talent.
Communist-led Cuba is struggling through economic crisis but its talented dancers continue to practice and perform.
The rigorous, state-subsidized ballet and associated school have produced an outsized share of dance stars over the years, including Carlos Acosta and José Manuel Carreño, for a small island nation of 11 million inhabitants.
Reporting by Alexandre Meneghini, Writing by Dave Sherwood, Editing by Rosalba O’Brien
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