Fernando Alonso: The Father of Cuban Ballet

by Toba Singer

Overview

Written records of Alonso’s work are scarce, yet Toba Singer’s quest to spotlight his seminal role in the development of the modern ballet canon yields key material: pre-blockade tapes from Lincoln Center, Spanish-language sources from the Museum of Dance in Havana, and interviews with the ballet master himself alongside a broad range of friends, relatives, and collaborators from throughout his long career, including his ex-wife, Alicia, a famous ballerina in her own right.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780813047102
Publisher:	University Press of Florida
Publication date:	03/05/2013
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
File size:	4 MB

About the Author

Toba Singer is the author of First Position: A Century of Ballet Artists. She lives in Oakland, California

Table of Contents

Prologue with Letter from Alicia Alonso ix

Acknowledgments xxi

Part I Antes (Before)

1 Always Ask Why 3

2 Pro-Arte Musical, Yavorsky, and New York 10

3 Alicia, Fernando, and Laura: Giant Steps across a Changing Landscape 17

4 Musicals, Mordkin, Balanchine, and the Birth of Ballet Theatre 22

5 Repertoire, Camaraderie, and an Étoile 25

6 Challenges and Pilgrimages 29

7 Autumn in New York, and a Dawning in Havana 33

8 Ballet Theatre, a University of Dance, and More… 39

9 Ballet Alicia Alonso 43

10 El Maestro de Maestros, the Father of Cuban Ballet 47

11 Crafting a Curriculum, Sculpting a Style 53

12 Legends and Lessons: Laura and Loipa 61

13 A Revolutionary Proposal 68

14 Batista's Blackmail Bid 73

15 The Soviet Union Invites the Alonsos 78

Part II Después (After)

16 Cuban Revolution Triumphs-and Invests in Ballet! 83

17 Constructing Ballet Schools, Extending the Revolution 91

18 International Recognition Abroad, at Home, on Film, and in Print 94

19 Camagúey: The Center of Gravity Shifts 100

20 Révérence 114

Part III Recuerdos (Recollections)

Introduction 121

Aurora Bosch 125

Carlos Acosta 129

Azari Plisetsky 131

Ramona de Sáa 133

Lázaro Carreño and Yoel Carreño 137

Tarda Vergara 140

Menia Martínez 142

René de Cárdenas 153

John White 156

Lorena Feijóo and Lupe Calzadilla 162

Jorge Esquivel 167

Lorna Feijóo and Nelson Madrigal 173

Donald Saddler 178

Grettel Morejón 180

Appendix A Dance Magazine Interview 189

Appendix B La danza eterna Interview 192

Appendix C Address to the Assemblée Internationale, Toronto 204

Appendix D Prizes Awarded to Cuban National Ballet Dancers, 1964-1974 210

Appendix E Selected BNC-Commissioned Repertoire Works, 1959-1974 211

Appendix F Elementary, Middle Ballet, and National Arts Schools 212

Appendix G Proposal on Ballet 213

Appendix H Revolutionary Government Statute to Guarantee National Ballet and Law 812 218

Chronology 223

Notes 227

Bibliography 229

Index 231

Editorial Reviews

“The story of the Alonsos’ performing career in the United States is, essentially, the story of the birth of American ballet....The book illuminates part of ballet history largely hidden from the West by the Cold War. A riveting read.”—Dance Europe

From the Publisher