Verb Ballets Travels To Cuba To Join ProDanza In March

Verb Ballets of Cleveland, Ohio prepares to travel to Cuba on March 3, 2018 to join forces with ProDanza of Havana in an international collaboration to form the Cleveland Havana Ballet. The Cleveland Havana Ballet will debut in Cuba with a groundbreaking partnership supported through the Cleveland Foundation's Creative Fusion initiative. This significant cultural collaboration will encompass performances in Havana, Cuba by the combined companies in March led by Verb Ballets' Producing Artistic Director, Dr. Margaret Carlson and ProDanza under the direction Laura Alonso.

Verb Ballets welcomes renowned Cuban dancer, Laura Alonso to the Cleveland studio February 19 - March 2, 2018 to set the ballet Yarini. The daughter of legendary ballet royalty Alicia Alonso, Laura Alonso is herself an award-winning ballet teacher with a 25-year career performing with Ballet Nacional de Cuba. Presented as The Cleveland Havana Ballet, the two companies will perform the full length classical ballet, Yarini running March 9-11, 2018 in Alicia Alonso Grand Theater in Havana. The ballet is by international dancer and choreographer, Iván Alonso, the son of Laura Alonso. Yarini is based on a historical hero who reached mythical proportions within popular Cuban culture and imagination. The ballet highlights passion, power and struggles for freedoms that are the essence of the Cuban spirit.

Verb Ballets' international tour will end with a shared repertory program with ProDanza running March 16-18, 2018 in the National Theater in Havana. This show will highlight the unique styles of American and Cuban ballet.

"We believe this is the first time in history a Cuban and American ballet company have performed together," said Dr. Carlson, Producing Artistic Director of Verb Ballets. "To be able to perform on stage with some of the best dancers in the world is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for our company."

This is the second year of the cultural exchange with Alonso through the Cleveland Foundation's Creative Fusion: Cuba Edition. Last year Alonso came to Cleveland, Ohio for two months to train Verb Ballets dancers in the Cuban ballet method. Verb Ballets is honored to collaborate with Alonso's ProDanza in this groundbreaking partnership.

March 9-11, 2018 - Yarini present by the Cleveland Havana BalletAlicia Alonso Grand Theater in Havana, Cuba

March 16-18, 2018 - Repertory program present by the Cleveland Havana Ballet National Theater in Havana, Cuba

All programs and artists are subject to change.

Verb Ballets, a contemporary ballet company, presents dynamic programming through bold artistry, unique styles and technical excellence that captivates a broad audience. Under the direction of Dr. Margaret Carlson, Producing Artistic Director and Richard Dickinson, MFA, Associate Director, the company will present a season that ignites passion in the energy, beauty and athleticism of dance. Critics have hailed Verb Ballets as, "Dashes preconceptions ...with keen dramatic power." -The Plain Dealer, "(Verb) is dance magnifique." - The Examiner, "confident and polished, Verb's dancers shone" - Dance International Magazine. Verb Ballets cultivates dance appreciation and nurtures wellness through movement in community dance classes, school residencies, senior outreach, library programs, master classes and college course partnerships. Verb Ballets has also been named one of Five Great Tiny Troupes in America by Dance Magazine and was one of the 25 dance companies in America to watch. As one of the oldest dance organizations in Cleveland we are proud to produce high caliber work and continue to connect with communities across a four-county reach. Additional information can be found at www.verbballets.org.

ProDanza Centro de Promoción de la Danza, better known as Pro Danza, is a world-renown center for the study and performance of dance located in Havana, Cuba. Since its founding in 1988, the center has been under the direction of revered ballet dancer and teacher Laura Alonso, the daughter of famous Cuban ballet dancers Alicia and Fernando Alonso. Training is based on the methodology and technique of the Cuban School of Ballet, which began in the 1930s as a distinctive and highly respected approach derived from older European and American methods. Pro Danza consistently produces dancers for major companies around the world. Pro Danza companies perform around the globe but, as a big part of the center's mission is to foster the love of dance in the Cuban people, performances are staged regularly across the island.