Elena Del Cueto

Ballet dancer, choreographer and instructor Elena del Cueto was born in the Havana neighborhood of El Vedado in Cuba on February 9, 1927. Her parents were José del Cueto and Elena Faz Tabío who noticed their daughter's interest in music and dancing from an early age. She was barely 14 when Elena was accepted at the ballet dancing school in Havana's Sociedad Pro-Arte Musical and soon became an accomplished ballerina. She demonstrated her talent, her determination, and her fresh approach to the art in many performances held at school functions and at other venues in Havana. In 1946 she was named auxiliary teacher at the Sociedad and that same year she married the school director, choreographer dancer Alberto Alonso, a brother of Fernando Alonso the husband of Cuba's prima ballerina Alicia Alonso. The couple united in life and in art, eventually had two daughters, Maria Victoria and Maria Elena.

With the arrival of television in Cuba, Elena was featured on broadcasts of various musical productions such as "Rapsodia Negra" composed by the famed Ernesto Lecuona, and her performances turned her into a favorite of Cuban audiences. She not only danced with incredible success in all the variety programs that were so popular in 1950s Cuba, but, as a leading member of the Ballet Nacional de Cuba, she also starred in numerous ballets in Havana's most distinguished stages. She made history with her own choreography of "Variations on a Theme by Haydn" (J.Bach) and "Fantasía Cubana" (P. Csonka) among other superb ballets in the company's repertoire.

In 1959 Elena's career slowed down with the arrival of the Cuban Revolution and the complete cultural control of Fidel Castro's dictatorship. Just about the same time, a disagreement with husband Alberto led to a bitter divorce. Disillusioned with the situation in her homeland, Elena faked a contract to dance in Mexico and managed to escape Cuba with her two daughters.

Hurt but undaunted she maintained her prestige as a prima ballerina during residencies in Mexico, Puerto Rico and the United States. She founded Elena del Cueto Dancing Studios in Queens, New York as well as in Miami, and a new generation of ballet dancers benefited from her knowledge and experience. During her years in exile and until the very end of her life, Elena maintained a close relationship with daughters María Victoria, (who married John Saccenti) and Maria Elena (married to Rolando Sierra). Elena was also devoted to grandsons Alberto and Arturo Sierra-Alonso whom she considered "her greatest achievements".

The glorious Elena del Cueto passed away quietly due to cardiac arrest at Saturn Nursing Home in Charlotte, North Carolina on July 24th 2014. She was 87 years old. As of this writing (2018) the Cuban government and the Ballet Nacional de Cuba continued to ignore and disregard Ms. del Cueto's history and contributions to the art due to her anti-communist ideals.