Dancing with the Revolution – Power, Politics, and Privilege in Cuba Schwall

Dancing with the RevolutionPower, Politics, and Privilege in Cuba\nAuthor(s): Elizabeth B. Schwall\nFormat: Hardback\nPublisher: The University of North Carolina Press, United States\nImprint: The University of North Carolina Press\nISBN-13: 9781469662961, 978-1469662961\nSynopsis\nElizabeth B. Schwall aligns culture and politics by focusing on an art form that became a darling of the Cuban revolution: dance. In this history of staged performance in ballet, modern dance, and folkloric dance, Schwall analyzes how and why dance artists interacted with republican and, later, revolutionary politics. Drawing on written and visual archives, including intriguing exchanges between dancers and bureaucrats, Schwall argues that Cubans dancers used their bodies and ephemeral, nonverbal choreography to support and critique political regimes and cultural biases.\n\nAs esteemed artists, Cuban dancers exercised considerable power and influence. They often used their art to posit more radical notions.