International Work
CUBA · MEXICO · THE UNITED STATES · SPAIN
Our Dance Grows Through Relationships
For more than two decades, DC Casineros has connected Washington, D.C., with Cuban artists, teachers and dance communities. Our international work is built through shared rehearsals, educational travel, performances, congresses and friendships that continue beyond the stage. These exchanges deepen how we teach and perform Casino, Cuban Son and Afro-Cuban dance.
Santiago de Cuba: A Shared Artistic Home
Our relationship with Santiago de Cuba is part of a wider history of exchange with Cuba spanning approximately twenty years. Learning alongside local dancers and musicians has shaped our attention to musicality, movement and the social life of Cuban dance. We return to these relationships as artists, students and friends.
Our Sister Company: All Stars Santiago de Cuba
All Stars Santiago de Cuba and its director, Jorge Luna Roque, are part of our extended artistic family. Jorge’s work brings together Casino, Rueda de Casino and Cuban popular dance, with a strong connection between choreography and the music that inspires it. His teaching and the All Stars’ distinctive movement have been important to DC Casineros’ artistic development.
Visits with All Stars · Santiago de Cuba · 2015–2018
Company artists and students visited our sister company in Santiago de Cuba between 2015 and 2018. Time together on and off the dance floor strengthened the friendships and shared learning at the heart of this exchange.
Company Visits to Santiago de Cuba
Exploring Santiago and spending time with fellow artists are part of our connection to Cuban dance and culture.
2015 · Somos Cubanos in Washington
Our partnership crossed into a new chapter in 2015 when we welcomed Compañía All Stars for its first visit to the United States. DC Casineros and Dance Place organized a tour of performances and master classes in Washington and New York.
On March 6, the two companies presented Somos Cubanos at Dance Place. Studio teaching, a Cuba Week demonstration at Busboys and Poets, All Stars’ Smithsonian presentation and joint dancing in the Haupt Garden brought the exchange into several parts of Washington’s cultural life.
Read the 2015 chapter in our company story · Watch the performances and explore the photographs
In 2017, DC Casineros welcomed All Stars artists to Washington for a residency and collaborative production at Dance Place. The exchange also included a master class at George Mason University. Visits, workshops and shared performance experiences have helped keep this relationship active across borders.
Read the 2017 residency announcement in our press archive · Meet Jorge Luna Roque
Our Sister Company: Ballet Folklórico Cutumba
Ballet Folklórico Cutumba is a Santiago de Cuba company of dancers, singers, percussionists and choreographers whose work draws on the cultural traditions of eastern Cuba. Its practice connects research, the preservation of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Haitian heritage, and the creation of theatrical performance.
Between 2012 and 2018, DC Casineros company members and students trained with Folklórico Cutumba dancers during visits to Santiago de Cuba. Learning with our sister company has strengthened our approach to rhythm, expressive movement and the cultural context of what we dance. These exchanges continue to shape the stylistic knowledge we bring into training and choreography.
Learning Across Cuba
Baracoa: Learning with the Nengón and Kiribá Community
During visits in 2012 and 2014, our dancers learned with the Nengón and Kiribá community in Baracoa. Adrian, Naomi, Paul and Patricia Rivera were among the company visitors who shared in that exchange.
Read the musical history and see more visit photographs · Remember Teresa Roché Lores
Our work with George Mason University connects dance education with firsthand cultural exchange. Educational trips to Cuba have introduced students and company artists to local teachers, community spaces and the relationships that sustain Cuban music and dance. This history includes connections in Santiago de Cuba, Baracoa and Guantánamo.
Travel is one part of a continuing exchange: learning from artists where they live and work, bringing that knowledge into our rehearsals, and creating opportunities for Cuban teachers to share their practice in the Washington region.
A Look Back: Our 2018 Journey
The company’s April 27–May 7, 2018 program offers one example of this approach. It brought travelers to Bayamo, Santiago de Cuba and Guantánamo, with classes and community encounters throughout the journey.
- Bayamo and Buey Arriba: local music and dance, community encounters, and a class with Jorge Luna Roque.
- Santiago de Cuba: training with All Stars, Cutumba and Folklórico de Oriente, alongside live music and cultural visits.
- Guantánamo: a class and performance with Babul, Changüí study, and social dancing with local artists.
This video introduces the 2018 journey. Visit the original trip archive for more of that chapter in our history.
CubaSon Congress: Organizing, Teaching and Performing
Rueda de Casino in Playa del Carmen
At CubaSon Congress in Playa del Carmen, our Rueda de Casino class brought dancers together to learn and share the social dance floor. Watch the class below.
Artistic Director Adrian Valdivia has worked alongside Ramsés Sariol to support CubaSon Congress and its focus on Cuban music and dance. This work includes distinct contributions in Mexico, New Orleans and Spain.
- Mexico: Adrian served as co-director and co-producer with Ramsés Sariol. DC Casineros participated in the 2023 congress in Playa del Carmen through teaching and performance.
- New Orleans, 2024: Adrian helped Ramsés organize the congress with local hosts Dile Que NOLA, contributing to the exchange beyond the company’s time on stage.
- Mallorca, Spain, 2025: company artists contributed teaching and joined an international performance collaboration honoring Juan Formell and Los Van Van.
CubaSon Mallorca 2025 · Creating Together
The collaboration brought DC Casineros together with three other dance companies from Mexico and the United States to perform at CubaSon Mallorca in 2025.
Watch: Tribute to Los Van Van · Mallorca 2025
An international collaboration from CubaSon Mallorca, shared on the DC Casineros YouTube channel.
Exchange in Performance and Teaching
Santiago de Cuba · 2017
“Pasarla bien” choreography with DC Casineros and All Stars in Santiago de Cuba, 2017. Recording shared online in 2025. Watch on YouTube.
Stockholm, Sweden · Archival Son Duet
Amanda Gill and Adrian Valdivia perform Son in Stockholm. Shared in the company’s 2017 video archive. Watch on YouTube.
Mallorca · CubaSon 2025
A Rueda de Casino workshop from CubaSon Congress in Mallorca, 2025. Watch on YouTube.
Join our classes in Washington, D.C. · Explore our work around the United States
Amanda and Adrian in Vancouver
Our international story also reaches Canada. Amanda Gill and Adrian Valdivia’s time in Vancouver is another chapter in the company’s life beyond Washington, D.C.
From Cultural Exchange to the Dance Floor
These relationships continue in our company’s choreography, classes and community programs. Meet the artists, explore our performances, or join us to experience Cuban dance in Washington, D.C.
Explore our national work · Meet the company ·Meet our Artistic Board · Watch performance recordings · Find a class