Joyous trip to Miami airport this morning, but our plane was to take off for Havana at 2PM, and it hasn’t even arrived yet!

Four bags of ballet gear will be in the hold of the plane!

More from Havana later!

The travelers are all busy packing their bags for tomorrow’s flight to Miami. We will all meet up at the Crowne Plaza Miami Airport Hotel and then have dinner at the Catch of the Day, our traditional dinner spot the night before the flight to Havana.

The photo above was taken at the ProDanza Ballet Academy in November, 2015 during our first visit as Team ProDanza.

Going to Cuba differs from most trips in that everything has to be paid in cash, and there is no place to buy anything that one might inadvertently forgotten.  This causes a slight degree of anxiety, and makes one tend to overpack.  We are also taking some things for our trusty guides Cecily, Nestor and Alain.  Francesca has some costumes for little ones that were donated by Lynn Welters of the New School of Dance in DC.  I have a whole suitcase filled with ballet shoes, leotards, tights, etc.

Saying goodbye to my Chickpea, the dancing dog!

Feel free to donate as little as you want! All will be appreciated! We can purchase a pair of ballet slippers for as little as $20! Planning to go back with more get in the next year!

Introducing the Kiwis!

Anne and Ken  Sullivan are my next door neighbors, and not only are they smart and fun, but they have been my saviors many times!  Ken, when he is in the country, is my tech support, the guy who gets into the outdoor sump pump in the middle of a torrential downpour and a great bartender on his deck (pronounced like Dick with a New Zealand accent).

Anne is a gardener extraordinaire and makes the best jams and chutneys. It was Anne that I went to when I needed some ballet skirts to take to ProDanza for a photo shoot. Little did I know what a fantastic job she would do.

Last week Ken’s sister Lynette arrived from Auckland, New Zealand and dove right in to help with the ballet skirts!  I have never seen such enthusiasm – she was even talking about starting a cottage industry. Sounds great to me, but not so much to Anne.

They are such great sports that they came out to the yard for a few photographs, and Ken joined in to help toss the scarves, which as you will see, didn’t turn out exactly as we expected.  Ken, being an ingenious sort of fellow, came up with an idea involving a chair and a rake.

It seemed promising, but…

This is the best that we could do! Hopefully, things will be smoother in Havana!

Even though we leave on Tuesday, if more funds come in we will be able to purchase a ceiling fan or two while in Havana! No air conditioning at the Academy!

This blog will tell you about my project to raise funds to provide the ProDanza Ballet Academy in Havana, Cuba with ballet gear and other necessary equipment to keep this vibrant school healthy and safe for all of its students.

The Center ProDanza of Cuba was established on December 30 of 1994 under the direction of the Grand Maitre de Ballet Laura Alonso, derived from the Department of Specialized Teaching Ballet Nacional de Cuba, in which they had created the basis for promoting technical Cuban Ballet School.

The center is located in an old country house known as the home fifth in the figures, located on Avenida 51 Esquina a 118, No. 11805, Mariano, La Habana, Cuba.  The building is grand, but in need of much repair. The students are eager and hard-working, but in need of ballet clothing.  Currently, there is no place in Cuba to buy ballet clothing, so it is imported in the suitcases of travelers, such as myself.

Although the environment is modest, this institution has contributed to the formation of classical dance talents, now recognized figures in various international companies such as José Manuel Carreño, principal dancer ofAmerican Ballet Theatre, Xiomara Reyes, prima ballerina of American Ballet Theatre, Arionel Vargas, solo Royal Winnipeg Ballet of Canada, Yat-Sen Chang, first dancer of the British National Ballet, among others.

I first traveled to Havana in March, 2015 as a student in the Peter Turney photography workshop. We visited ProDanza one afternoon, and I was completed charmed by the students, who were so warm to us, and so dedicated to learning classical ballet. As a photographer, I couldn’t help but notice the dilapidated condition of their tights and shoes.

Upon returning to Virginia, I had the idea to do what I could to raise money for new clothing, and set up an Indiegogo site.  I also made plans to return in November, 2015 to deliver clothing.  Many friends, relatives and colleagues donated generously to this project, so I was able to take a large collection to the school and personally deliver to Laura Alonso.

In addition, Capezio generously donated clothing for 50 male students, which we had delivered later.

A few months ago I managed to get the school a large screen TV for them to watch themselves performing. Malia Everette and Cicely Sanchez, of AltruVistas were kind enough to help purchase it and deliver it to the school.

We are going back to Havana June 15th and will be delivering more clothing, etc.  Some of my regular travelers will be along, including Peg McCarty, Nancy Moon and Francesca Scott.  They are such good support!

If you’d like to donate, please click on the Donate button, and the payment will be processed through PayPal.

Thank you for your donation!