International ballet star, Julio Boca, gave a master class on Oct 31st at the Cuban National Ballet School as a tribute to late maestro Fernando Alonso.

The master class was the beginning of an event titled “Jornadas Fernando Alonso “, made up of master classes, talks and lectures by renowned Cuban and international dancers and experts at headquarters of the famous Cuban Ballet School.

As part of Havana’s 24th International Ballet Festival, currently underway in the Cuban capital until November 7, the tribute to Fernando Alonso, who founded and helped develop the famed school throughout the years, includes classes by former American Ballet Theater star and current Artistic Director with Ballet San José, José Manuel Carreño; former Paris Opera Ballet Etoile, Cyril Atanasof; current ABT ballerina Xiomara Reyes, and former Japanese-Pilipino dancer Erick Boan.

The 24th International Ballet Festival’s tribute to Fernando Alonso takes place is marking the centennial of his birth in December, 2014. Alonso passed away in Havana in August, 2013, at the age of 98.