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Fidel
attends Carlos Acosta‘s choreographic debut
BY
ANDRES ABREU —Granma daily staff writer—
PRESIDENT
Fidel Castro attended the internationally famous
ballet dancer Carlos Acosta first choreography
entitled Tocororo fábula Cubana (Tocororo, a
Cuban fable), at the García Lorca Room, Gran
Theater, Havana, on Saturday, February 15. Ramona de
Saá, director of the Cuban National Ballet School,
accompanied the Cuban leader. After the performance,
Fidel spoke to Carlos Acosta — the show’s
creator and general director — along with the rest
of those who took part in this unique dance
experience.
The
cast of Tocororo… includes the Cuban
Contemporary Dance Company, (director, Miguel
Iglesias); guest dancers Verónica Corveas (Cuban
National Ballet) and Alexander Varona (National
Folklore Group); accomplished actress Hilda Oates;
young dancer Yohan Acosta (Elementary Ballet School
student); and a musical group consisting of José
Varona, Hammadi Rencurrell, Yasdany Portillo,
Dreiser Durruty and Dismer Hechavarría. The evening
was full of surprises as the work mixes ballet,
contemporary dance, dance-theatre, theater, live
music (excellent work by designer Salvatore Forino)
and popular culture.
The
story — a humble boy who sets off to find new
horizons and faces life’s challenges along the way
— takes place within a structure where different
artistic forms and diverse ballet styles interact.
Tocororo
presents us
with universal messages against war and selfishness
via a vibrant tour of Cuban-style customs and ways.
The
work can be read as a fable that seeks a simple way
of communicating typical elements of Cuban
nationality using a contemporary motif.
Carlos
Acosta makes the most of his dance potential to
impart nobility to the choreography, as does
Alexander Varona in his character and Verónica
Corveas’s attractive style. Acosta demonstrates
that as he gains more experience and knowledge of
staging, he will reach the same heights attained as
a choreographer.
After
the audience’s applause had faded away, Fidel
mounted the stage to discuss the show, the book that
Carlos Acosta is currently writing, and today’s
dance in Cuba. In the presence of the cast and
principal figures involved in the performance,
including maestro Fernando Alonso and Contemporary
Dance Company director Miguel Iglesias, the Cuban
leader expressed his interest in national dance
training centers and dance companies. He manifested
his confidence that the country’s current cultural
and educational policies will enable more children,
like the lead role in Tocororo, to find new
and better horizons through dance.
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