The Cuban Cultural Celebration 2024, set to take place from October 10 to 20, reserves its main tributes for writer Alejo Carpentier and art instructors.

This was revealed at a press conference held at the Abelardo Estorino Theatre Hall of the Ministry of Culture (Mincult), featuring special guests such as Dr. Graziella Pogolotti, the renowned intellectual; Digna Guerra, director of the National Choir of Music; writer Francisco López Sacha; musicologist Sonia Margarita Pérez Cassola, director of the National Museum of Music; and dancer and choreographer Leiván García, director of the Cuban National Folkloric Ensemble.

Speaking about Carpentier, Dr. Pogolotti noted that he was not only a writer, journalist, and musicologist but also a master explicitly recognized by the generation of storytellers who formed part of the so-called «Latin American Boom» in narrative literature.

The esteemed essayist also shared that she will soon make available to the press and public a text dedicated to the life and work of Carpentier, winner of the Miguel de Cervantes Prize (1977). This year, we also commemorate the 120th anniversary of his birth.

The creation of the José Martí Art Instructors Brigade (BJM) on October 20, 2004, initiated by Commander in Chief Fidel Castro Ruz, also serves as an important moment to acknowledge the efforts of this group of artists. This initiative was preceded by the opening of the first National School of Art Instructors in 1961. As Agustín Adrián Pérez González, Director General of Cultural Programming at the Ministry of Culture, explained, “Fidel’s idea, supported by the will of great figures like Isabel Monal, helped promote all the actions necessary to make the fundamental principle of the Revolution’s cultural policy—the democratization of culture—a reality.”

Pérez González highlighted two significant events related to the BJM: the Central Political-Cultural Gala for the 20th anniversary of its founding and the 12th National Workshop on Scientific-Practical Experience Exchange, both held in Villa Clara.

The Alejo Carpentier Foundation is also collaborating on various events, including Saturday Book Club, scheduled for October 12 and 19 in the Madera Street area of Old Havana, and a Grand Tribute Concert for the author of The Kingdom of This World, to be held in the Auditorium of the University of the Arts.

As in previous years, the opening of the Celebration will carry special significance with the cultural ceremony taking place in Manzanillo, Granma, featuring the traditional ringing of the Demajagua sugar mill bell and the launch of the call for the 30th edition of the Fiesta de la Cubanía in Bayamo.

On October 10, the capital will witness the premiere of Comunidad, a film by Claudio Peláez Sordo. The audiovisual piece captures the process of assembling, rehearsing, and staging the dance performance Comunidad by the Cuban National Folkloric Ensemble, a work that won the Milanés Scholarship 2023 from the Hermanos Saíz Association (AHS).

Deputy Minister of Culture, Lizette Martínez Luzardo, noted that up until the 20th, all municipalities across the country will participate in this wide-reaching movement, and events will continue beyond that date.

“This Celebration will also contribute to education by encouraging the study and deepening of our cultural identity,” she added.

Martínez Luzardo emphasized the reopening of the National Museum of Music, the National Choir of Cuba’s performance at Havana’s John Lennon Park, and the 28th edition of the Havana International Ballet Festival Alicia Alonso, which will run from October 28 to November 10.

“Our diplomatic missions will also be hosting their own activities. An important highlight will be the Cuban delegation’s participation in the Book Fair in Serbia, which forms part of our international program. Additionally, there’s a forthcoming tribute marking the 505th anniversary of Havana, a city profoundly represented in Carpentier’s works,” the Deputy Minister concluded.

In this context, the AHS National Council will present the Maestros de Juventudes awards, while other activities will underscore the negative impact of the U.S. government’s blockade on Cuba’s cultural sector.

According to Daylén Vega Muguercia, Director of the Multimedial Center at Mincult, the planned schedule for the Cuban Cultural Celebration 2024 will be accompanied by a strong communication campaign, with further details to be shared through traditional media outlets and the Ministry’s social media channels, including X, Facebook, and Instagram.

Photos: José Luis Alvarez Suárez

Translated by Luis E. Amador Dominguez