• Submitted by: manso
• Arts and Culture
• 01 / 13 / 2011

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2011.01.11 - 14:45:57 / [email protected]. HAVANA, CUBA.- The Cuban dancer, Loipa Araujo, was awarded the French Legion of Honor Medal, the highest award given by the government of this European nation, reports Prensa Latina news agency.

The French ambassador to Cuba, Jean Mendelson, pointed out that for more than four decades Araujo has given her best in the interest of French ballet.

Mendelson added that, beyond her technique, she stands out for contributing to the training of young dancers, in which she conveys the joy of dancing and respect for everyone.

He recalled the first time she traveled to Paris, in 1966, where she won the audience as principal dancer of the Cuban National Ballet.

The French diplomat also highlighted her relations with other great figures of the French ballet like Maurice Bejart and Roland Petit, who baptized her: the Cuban muse of Marseilles.

Loipa Araujo dedicated this award to Cuba and to all those who helped her throughout her dancing career, and said that she takes within herself the legacy of France and her peers at that epoch and feels certain about having left a piece of Cuba and herself there.  

Alicia and Fernando Alonso, two important figures in her career, Monsignor Carlos Manuel de Cespedes, among other personalities of Cuban culture, attended the award ceremony.

Araujo –– Maitre of the Paris Opera, the Scala de Milan, the Royal Ballet of London, and the Royal Danish Ballet Company –– was also awarded the Gold Star Award at the International Dance Festival of Paris, the Medal of the Brazilian Council of Dance, and the National Culture Award, among others.

British critic Arnold Haskell said she is one of the four jewels of the Cuban National Ballet, along with Aurora Bosh, Josefina Mendez and Mirta Pla.

The Legion of Honor was established by Napoleon I and it is given to outstanding personalities well-known by their merits.

Prima ballerina assoluta Alicia Alonso, late dancer Josefina Mendez, moviemaker Alfredo Guevara, poet and writer Miguel Barnet, and Doctor Rodrigo Alvarez Cambras are among the Cuban figures who have been awarded this medal (ACN)

Source: RR