Tribute in Italy to prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso

October 9, 2019

The figure of prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso and her outstanding artistic and human qualities were the center of a cultural evening organized by the Cuban embassy in Italy and the Grecam Association.

The meeting, held at a full house at the headquarters of the institution dedicated to research and creative experimentation with a therapeutic approach, was the second of the activities in the program of the Cuban Culture Days in Italy, which will continue until the end of this month in several cities in this country.

The central theme was the screening of the documentary 'The Awakening of a Dream' (2010), by Cuban filmmaker Luis Ernesto Doñas, about the restaging of 'The Sleeping Beauty' by the National Ballet of Cuba, under the direction of the exceptional exponent of classical dance, who will reach her centennial next year.

In addition to the screening of the excellently crafted 45-minute film, as part of the evening the photographic exhibition 'Alicia Alonso and Cuban Cinema' was inaugurated, with images from the archives of the Cuban Institute of Cinematographic Art and Industry (Icaic), also curated by Doñas.

The young director, together with the poet and choreographer, also Cuban, Laura Domingo, formed a panel moderated by Catherina Ferrara, with whom they held an animated dialogue, supported by numerous interventions from the audience, among whom were Ofelia González and Pablo Moret, former principal dancers of the BNC.

With respective interventions, the president of Grecam, Carla Polidoro, and the official in charge of cultural affairs at the Cuban embassy, Lisset Argüelles, highlighted the attributes of Alicia Alonso and the greatness of her work as founder of the BNC and the Cuban school of ballet.

Polidoro referred to Cuban culture and its humanistic sense, expressing that each time she and her colleagues visit the island, 'we feel at home', and added that 'as an organization we are interested in man as an active subject in relation to the community', which is evident in Cuba, which she said is not a dream but a symbol.

Polidoro also clarified that together with the tribute to Alicia Alonso, Grecam greeted with this activity the 500 years of the founding of Havana, an anniversary that will be commemorated next November 16.