Ballet Nacional de Cuba's 60th anniversary: the world gathered to dance in Havana.

Americans were noticeably absent when the 21st International Ballet Festival convened last October in Havana, Cuba. This was not a surprise, of course, in light of the trade embargo that the U.S. has maintained against Cuba since 1962. But the absence was particularly poignant for Alicia Alonso, founder and prima ballerina assoluta of Ballet Nacional de Cuba, as her company prepared to celebrate its 60th anniversary.

"Alicia is sad we have no Americans now in the company," said company historian Miguel Cabrera, noting that of the 40 original dancers who started the company, only 16 were Cubans. Though Alonso is Cuban by birth, she studied in New York at the School of American Ballet and was a long-reigning star with American Ballet Theatre before returning to Cuba and founding BNC in 1948.

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Featured in the festival's opening night gala was Theme and Variations, which Balanchine originally set on Alonso at Ballet Theatre in 1947. "The Ballet Nacional de Cuba and American Ballet Theatre have a special relationship," Cabrera said. "The performance tonight is an homage to that."

The U.S. wasn't the only country missing from the festival guest book. If the event were a map, pins this year would have gone into only Argentina, Denmark, France, Korea, Mexico, Russia, Spain, Chile, and Venezuela--a mere shadow of the 1960s and '70s, when dancers from 40 companies arrived in Havana to perform.

That said, there was certainly no shortage of dance to enjoy at this 21st biennial gathering, and the houses were full. Ten days of performances, with several choices a night, included full-length versions of Sleeping Beauty, Giselle, Swan Lake, opening and closing galas, and showings by guest artists and choreographers.

During the day, the company graciously opened its studios for visitors to observe company class and coaching sessions. Imagine wandering through the arched entryway of the white stucco BNC headquarters to find master teacher (and former partner to Alonso) Lazaro Carreno (see "Teacher's Wisdom," Dec. 2004) leading a Vaganova-based men's class in one studio (among the participants were Cuban stars-of-the-future-to-watch: Carlos Acosta's nephew Yonah, Jose Manuel Carreno's brother Joel, and Raul Mazorra), while across the courtyard the stunning Viengsay Valdes and Dayron Vera were being coached by former BNC star Marta Garcia and current ballet mistress Maria Elena Llorente in the adagio of Jose Pares' Bach x 11.

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It's one thing to see the Cubans performing on their own turf in front of adoring fans--ballet dancers are like rock stars in Cuba--but perhaps the real test of their training and skill is how well they adapt to the work of guest artists. Case in point was the wildly successful Act III of Napoli, performed at the Mella Theater. As part of a two-year exchange, Royal Danish Ballet artistic director Frank Andersen coached BNC corps members in the Bournonville classic. Thomas Lund and Diana Cuni of the Royal Danish traveled to Havana to perform the lead roles.

It was a challenge for the Cubans to tone down their sensual bravura and master the fast footwork and demure epaulement of Bournonville. The audience loved it. Afterward Andersen talked about the difficulty of learning the Danish technique. "It's been a long-term project," he said. "But when the result comes out as it does in Napoli, we say 'Yes, this is what it is supposed to be!'"

Exclusive Cuban festival footage, at www.dancemagazine.com.