From Christine Temin in the Boston Globe: The tug of Cuba- In their work and in their lives, exiled artists struggle with the place they once called home

Jose Mateo of Jose Mateo's Ballet Theatre (Cambridge) is Cuban. The Spring's show is called "The Cuban Condition". Basically, all Cuban music. Cuban music is a lot more varied than the stereotypes would have us believe.

Mr. Mateo has not been able to make it back to Cuba, although he has tried. Cultural exchange between the two countries is still limited, even in this post-Communist age. So his take on it is from the outside looking in, without ever really knowing how older Cubans would react. A number of older Cuban audience members, who spent significant time in Cuba before emigrating, said they very much liked it and thought it was representative of the "old Cuba" they remember.

<small>[ 18 April 2004, 05:30 PM: Message edited by: citibob ]</small>

From the Miami Herald,

Click for more

Hope the book's better than this article. With a few anecdotes, it gives little sense of the thrust of the book. I hope the book looks at how the arts, including dance, have blossomed in Cuba since the Revolution.

<small>[ 20 July 2004, 04:00 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

A documentary worth watching:

That link isn't working for me Azlan.

Stuart, maybe it's a UK vs US thing. That link seems to work fine. But here is a another feature, specifically on Cuban dancers with extensive quote from Alicia Alonso:

<a href=http://www.reuters.co.uk/newsPackageArticle.jhtml?type=entertainmentNews&storyID=564726&src=rss/uk/entertainmentNews&section=news target=_blank>Cuba's ballerinas wow dance world</a>
By Anthony Boadle, Reuters

Cuba's ballerinas wow dance world
From the CNN website


HAVANA, Cuba (Reuters) -- From a dilapidated Havana mansion run by a nearly blind legendary ballerina, Cuba is turning out some of the world's finest ballet dancers who are hotly sought by leading international companies.

Trained by 83-year-old ballet great Alicia Alonso at the National Ballet of Cuba, the dancers blend joyful Cuban sensuality and a superb classical training combining Russian, French and English techniques. The combination has stunned audiences and won them critical acclaim.

click for more

CHRISTINA ALMEIDA wrote:

"...the Castro regime would not let the troupe travel to Las Vegas for its first U.S. engagement...especially since U.S. officials rejected a similar [visa] request in February."

I wonder if the author would write: "..the Bush regime would not let the Nilas Martins Dance Group travel to Cuba..." There would, of course, have been little or no chance of the Cuban government rejecting visa requests for the Nilas Martins dancers.

<small>[ 18 November 2004, 10:45 AM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

Following discussions, we have decided to consolidate two topics:

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And from Steve Friess, correspondent to the Boston Globe:
44 in Cuban dance troupe defect - Seek US asylum; cite fear of not being allowed to perform *******************************

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mehunt posted 17 November 2004 01:13 AM
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So nice to see Lyndsey Winship's byline in the Guardian.

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Stuart Sweeney posted 17 November 2004 01:26 AM
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Lyndsey's on a roll, with articles in The Guardian on consecutive days. Here's the other one - an interview with Rafael Bonachela:

http://forum.criticaldance.com/cgi-bin/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic;f=5;t=002712;p=2#000031

I'm sure the Cuban dancers' skill and dynamism will ensure their success in the US and elsewhere. In Lyndsey's article, we learn:

"In Cuba, you can work a lot but you don't really see much money. Here you can work a lot and you see money," says Havana-born Janet Fuentes, 22, star of the ill-fated musical Murderous Intentions. Fuentes came to the UK four years ago and has chosen to stay, with no pressure from the authorities on either side.

To put the financial position in perspective, the CIA Factbook reports that the per capita GDPs are:

Cuba - $2,900

USA - $37,800

ie a ratio of 13:1.

In comparison, for Mexico, not facing a US trade embargo, the equivalent figure is $9,000.

Recently, in what appears to be a tightening of the embargo, the Nilas Martins Dance Company was refused permission by the U.S. Treasury Department to attend an international festival in Cuba. Further, my guess is that, as a result of this mass defection, the number of Cuban companies allowed to travel to the US by the Cuban authorities will decline from the current levels. So, unfortunately, there is likely to be even less artistic contact between the two countries.

Among the works the US is missing is "Tocororo", mentioned in Lyndsey's article, with around 20 Cuban performers and, of course, UK and Canadian tourists travel to Cuba regularly for the world class arts and culture. In the Observer newspaper's "Human Rights Index", constructed in 1999, Cuba came 35th (low numbers=worst human rights) and Mexico was worse, at 16th. So, I fail to see the justification for the current, unilateral, US cultural embargo on Cuba.

<small>[ 19 November 2004, 01:30 PM: Message edited by: Stuart Sweeney ]</small>

I posted this over on the NYCB thread, but thought it might make more sense here...

his isn't about the winter season, but the NY Times reports that Nilas Martins & his group of NYCB dancers were denied visas to take part in the International Festival of Ballet in Havana.

Not to get into politics, but this kind of visa refusal is beyond ridiculous, and since other US dancers apparently will be attending, there must be some other issue involved.

The other 19+ other countries have no problem allowing their dancers to visit Cuba, and the US regularly allows other dancers and the national fencing team to go to Havana for competitions and performances. So it seems just odd that this request was turned down, and turned down repeatedly. Not to mention that it's almost comical that the refusal came from the Treasury Department.

It seems very hypocritical to welcome Cuban dancers to live and dance here, but then to forbid our own dancers from performing in Cuba. If art can't bring the world together, than nothing can.

On a side note, Martins must now be an American citizen, as I belive he wouldn't have this kind of problem travelling on a Danish passport.

Kate

In The Christian Science Monitor, Joe Schoenmann interviews Havana Night Club dancers who filed for political asylum in Las Vegas:

http://www.csmonitor.com/2004/1123/p03s01-woam.html?s=hns