After 30 long years, the Bolshoi Ballet returns to Cuba.  The Russian troop will perform along with the Cuban National Ballet at the Havana International Book Fair.  The event will include Russian artists, as well as writers.

This performance is a clear sign that the relationship between Russia and Cuba is on the mend.  The two countries were once allies, but those times ended with the collapse of the Soviet Union.  The three decades since the split have seen much change in the world, and it seems as though the old friends are in the process of making up.

The Cuban Ballet is led by Alicia Alonso, a legendary ballerina, who has trained many Cuban dancers now performing around the world.  Alonso, now nearly blind, still infuses her passion for dance in her students.

In a country like Cuba, where art is regarded as necessary as food…sustaining a reputable ballet troop has been tough.  Poverty is a big issue and has been so since the school’s beginning in 1959.  Yet, Alicia Alonso and the Cuban National Ballet persevere.

Politics and economic issues kept these two old friends from each other for 30 years.  It’s refreshing to watch as they reunite, dancing together as if no time had passed at all.  Art is a universal language and a gift to be treasured.  Maybe if we spent more time dancing…we would have less time to fight.