The Cubans, Acosta and Virelles, came together at the suggestion of Rojo as principal dancers just when she was beginning to attract the reputation of renewing the company with the star Alina Cojocaru as prima ballerina and the jewel of Cuban ballet Loipa Araujo as associate artistic director.Yonah Acosta was made principal dancer of the English National Ballet in 2014, after being soloist for the company since 2011. In 2007 he won silver medals in the Beijing Ballet competition and the Grand Prix of the Cuban International Ballet competition.Alejandro Virelles was a dancer with the National Ballet of Cuba and at the time of his contract with the British company he was a soloist with the Boston Ballet in the United States.Virelles is valued for his light and stylised line, and also for his impressive capacity for jumps and turns. He was voted in 2011 by critics in different parts of the world as one of the best 100 dancers on the world (number 18) together with the other Cubans: Viengsay Valdés (6), Dani Hernández (17) and Osiel Gounod (21).
Cuba 50 