Viengsay Valdés is appointed as General Director of Ballet Nacional de Cuba

January 2, 2020

The first prima ballerina of the Ballet Nacional de Cuba (BNC) Viengsay Valdés was appointed General Director of that company by the Minister of Culture, Alpidio Alonso.

The appointment took place on the stage of the 'Gran Teatro de La Habana Alicia Alonso', in the presence of the BNC artistic cast and invited press.

Since January 22, 2019, Valdés had held the position of artistic subdirector of the company then directed by the legendary Alicia Alonso, who passed away on October 17 at 98 years of age.

In 2019, the BNC celebrated the 71st anniversary of its founding by Alicia, Fernando and Alberto Alonso, a trilogy of brilliant ballerina, extraordinary teacher and original choreographer, whose joint work flourished in the world-renowned Cuban school of ballet.

The newly appointed director was a direct apprentice of the Alonsos, the so-called four jewels of Cuban ballet (Josefina Méndez, Loipa Araújo, Aurora Bosch and Mirta Plá) and many other prominent teachers of the company that since 2017 has been distinguished as Cultural Heritage of the Nation.

Valdés, valued as one of the top figures of Cuban ballet today, has been a guest artist with the Ballet of Washington, United States; the Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico; the Joburg Ballet, of South Africa; the Bolshoi and the Mariinski, of Russia, among other companies.

The Ministry of Culture of Cuba awarded her the Distinction for National Culture (1999), the Alejo Carpentier Medal (2003) and the Raúl Gómez García Medal (2014).

Meanwhile, the Association of Scenic Artists of the Uneac (Union of Writers and Artists of Cuba) awarded her the Female Performance Prize in 2009, and the Lorna Burdsall Prize in 2015.

Furthermore, she was chosen among the 100 best ballerinas in the world in the 2010-2011 season by the prestigious Dance Europe magazine, and has taken her art to stages on all five continents, thanks to her commitments with the BNC and numerous invitations to galas of world stars and international festivals.

Viengsay received on this January 1st the Annual Prize of the Gran Teatro de La Habana "Alicia Alonso"