Leo
Leo was born and raised in Havana, and took his first steps in dance at age eight with a Cuban dance group that was part of the iconic “Casa de la Cultura” in Havana. In 2003, he was selected to study at the prestigious National College of Art and Music Shows (ENAEM) in Havana. His tenure at ENAEM allowed him to become a professional dancer and choreographer with extensive knowledge of traditional Cuban and international dances, including Afro-Cuban, Afro-Haitian, ballet and contemporary dance such as Mambo, Cha Cha Cha, Pilon, Mozambique, Rumba, Salsa, Son, Guaguanco, Columbia, Yambú, Spanish dance, and Tango. After completing his undergraduate studies, he was chosen by one of the most prestigious dance companies of Cuba: “Santiago Alfonso”, whose principal was the director of the world-renowned Tropicana Dance and Music Show in Havana.
After moving to Edmonton he started the Cuban Movements Dance Academy in 2013 to share his passion and love for Cuban dance with the Edmonton community. In 2020, he found a permanent home for his dance academy on 124th Street and was also awarded the Mowat Diversity Award by the Edmonton International Fringe Theatre Festival for his original dance musical production called “Mi Habana Querida”. This dance musical is a 1-hour immersion in the rich cultural heritage of Cuba through a dance journey from traditional AfroCuban to the modern styles of today. It debuted at the 2021 Edmonton Fringe Festival, selling out six out of the seven scheduled shows to critical acclaim from well-established Fringe reviewers.
In 2021 he was selected by the Good Women Collective to be part of their curated showcase for Expanse 2021, a dance and movement festival part of the Chinook Series in Edmonton. For Expanse, he debuted The Power of the Drum, a 15-min original piece combining a fusion of AfroCuban and contemporary dance, drumming and narrative. This piece has been selected to be one of four theatre projects for RISER Edmonton, and will evolve into a 1-hour mixed media show intended as a homage to the power of the drum and dance for the resilience, adaptability, creativity, and autonomy of the Cuban Diaspora in the midst of struggle, crisis, and uncertainty. It will debut at the Backstage Theatre in February 2022.