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Alicia Alonso

©Yander Zasmora
Alicia Alonso, UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador.

The Cuban ballerina and choreographer Alicia Alonso was designated UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador in June 2002, in recognition of her outstanding contribution to the development, preservation and popularization of classical dance, through which she has promoted the UNESCO’s ideals and the fellowship of the world’s peoples and cultures.

Through the numerous activities she has undertaken in her native Cuba since decades, Ms Alonso played an exceptional role to preserve, develop, popularize and promote classical dance especially among young generations.

As Director and leading figure of the Cuban National Ballet, Alicia Alonso is an inspiration to a new generation of Cuban dancers who have gained a notable place in international ballet. In June 1999, she was awarded the UNESCO Pablo Picasso Medal for her extraordinary contribution to dance.

Since her designation, she has concerned herself with programmes and projects on basic education and on the preservation of tangible and intangible heritage. Furthermore since 2007, she is the sponsor of UNESCO’s ‘Dance for Life’ programme, aimed at preventing elitism and exclusion in the field of dancing.

In her capacity as a UNESCO Goodwill Ambassador, she organised a special Gala event, which was held at the National Ballet of Cuba in March 2015 to celebrate UNESCO’s 70th anniversary.

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