Cuban essayist Zuleica Romay, who recently won the special 2012 Casa de las Americas Literature Award on black presence in the contemporary Americas and the Caribbean, called for cultural policies to face today's stereotypes and racist behaviours.

After receiving the award, the author of "Elogio de la Altea o las Paradojas de la Racialidad" (Altea Praise and Racial Paradoxes), told Prensa Latina that the the work allows her to appreciate racial prejudices through socio-cultural processes that are often covert.

Thanks to ComoNo, Cuba50 have a pair of tickets to give away to see the amazing Los Van Van in concert at The Electric Brixton in London on 1st March 2012.

To enter the competition – send an email to office@cuba50.org with 'Los Van Van comp' in the subject line, with your full name and a contact tel number to arrive by 22 February 2012.

Gallery 27 Cork Street, London – 23 to 28 April, 2012
The Lighthouse, Glasgow – 7 to 13 May, 2012

Beyond the Frame: Contemporary Cuban Art presents fresh and diverse artworks by 29 of Cuba's leading artists specially selected for this unique UK exhibition. Works by the island's internationally acclaimed contemporary artists will be displayed alongside top documentary photographers, some of whom have shaped perceptions of Cuba, both real and imaginary. Looking beyond the frame, the exhibition will offer a snapshot of an art scene that is engaging, eclectic and exciting. Pieces in vivid colours and more sombre items, both abstract and figurative, will be displayed alongside conceptual work using found materials and familiar iconic images.

Cuban actor Francisco García, better known as Pancho, was presented with the 2012 National Theatre Award at the Hubert de Blanck Theater yesterday, while the Villanueva awards were given to the best shows for 2011 as part of celebrations marking Cuban Theatre Day.

Cuba has borrowed from the Vatican's Missionary Ethnological Museum the oldest piece of indigenous Christian art of the New World to be exhibited for a year at the Museum of the City in Havana.

Camerata de Música Áurea is a choir from Santiago de Cuba. They sing classical pieces, from Monteverdi to the 'Flight of the Bumblebee' in multi-part harmony as well as Cuban music from the typically amorous boleros to modern folk songs.

Project Cuba (2012) 16th July 2012 – 1st September 2012

STRONG hurricane winds are already blowing over Havana. Fortunately, this time they are cinema-related winds. Cubans, who are great cinema lovers, are getting ready for the celebrations and competition offered by the International Festival of the New Latin American Cinema. This 33rd edition, from December 1 through 11, will screen 562 films from 46 countries.

Alfredo Guevara, the Festival's president and founder, gave a press conference at Havana's Hotel Nacional where he announced that, this year 1,064 films were entered, of which 120 were selected for competition in seven categories: Fiction, First works, Medium and short feature films, Documentaries, Animation, Unedited film scripts and Posters.

Cuban photographer Ernesto Fernández Nogueras received the National Prize for Visual Arts 2011 [Premio Nacional de Artes Plásticas 2011] in Havana in honor of the breadth and quality of his work, which combines aesthetic experience and testimonial values.

Fernández Nogueras became the second "master of the lens" be distinguished with this prize, awarded by Cuba's Ministry of Culture and the National Council of Fine Arts.

Cuba holds its position as the top national baseball team in the world, according to the International Baseball Federation (IBAF).

Despite not being a winner in international competitions this year, the Cuban baseball team holds the leading position, followed by the United States, South Korea, Japan, which are second, third and fourth, respectively.

Alberto Juantorena, Olympic gold medal winner and Cuban deputy Sports Minister will be one of over 50 speakers at the largest conference on Latin America to be held in London on Saturday 3rd December. He will bring a unique perspective on sport and accessibility in Cuba and the world.

By Andy de la Tour reporting on the Havana International Theatre Festival
Our group of actors didn't know quite what to expect when we took our show, ‘Harold Pinter in Cuba', to Havana for the 14th International Havana Theatre Festival in October. In the event, it was a bigger success than we dared hope. Two packed out shows in the modern auditorium of the beautiful Museo del Bellas Artes, standing ovations and a half page in Granma were testament to the international reputation of Harold Pinter.

Although Harold was known by many Cubans as an outspoken critic of the US embargo and as the recipient of the Nobel Prize for Literature, few in our appreciative audiences really knew Harold's written work. Our evening of excerpts from his plays, poems and prose gave them an entertaining insight into the breadth and depth of Harold's writing, his wisdom, his humour, his romanticism and his lethal dissection of corrupt power. From the moving poem to his widow, Lady Antonia Fraser, It is Here, to the brutal realism of ‘Mountain Language', Pinter's words revealed themselves as a universal language whose meaning was easily grasped by audiences not wholly fluent in English.

Raíces Cubanas, led by virtuoso violinist and musical director Omar Puente, headlined a fabulous night to celebrate Cuba's national day of Culture in October. The event at Conway Hall was a packed out, fun filled evening which also featured dance and poetry sets from Tio Molina, beautiful boleros from Yuri Moreno plus a special set from guest Colombian singer Fabian Velez dedicated to the Miami Five. The event also heard from Cuban Ambassador Esther Armenteros.

La guarida del topo (The Mole's Den) is the latest full-length Cuban film currently being screened in movie theatres nationwide. Its director, filmmaker Alfredo Ureta, spoke to Juventud Rebelde newspaper about the leading character, "the mole," a lonely man performed by Cuban actor Nestor Jimenez.

Danza Contemporanea de Cuba received overwhelming acclaim for their first ever major UK tour in 2010. The fresh, joyous and passionate programme of work featured the outstanding Mambo 3XX1, created by resident choreographer and dancer George Céspedes and nominated for both and Olivier and TMA award for his outstanding contribution to dance.

This internationally renowned company return in spring 2012 with a programme including the world premiere of a piece by award-winning choreographer and influencer of modern dance Itzik Galili, and another chance to experience the incredible Mambo 3XX1.