When Tania Vergara Perez left Cuba, she left her dream with it.  A life devoted to dance had borne fruit, and Perez was the founder and choreographer of her own award-winning dance company: Ballet Contemporáneo Endedans. Her work appeared on stages from Johannesburg to Tokyo, and between raising children and teaching at the National Ballet School in Havana, she saw the world. But parents will do anything for their children. That was 2014. Today, at the helm of the new Endedans Contemporary Ballet, Perez is bringing her blend of Cuban ballet, contemporary dance, and classic theater to the Sarasota stage through collaborations with Sarasota Cuban Ballet School and Sarasota Contemporary Dance. SRQ caught up with Perez between premieres to talk philosophy, inspiration, her favorite movie and a troublesome trend threatening modern ballet. 

What makes Cuban ballet distinct from other schools of ballet?  TANIA VERGARA PEREZ In the ‘70s, Cuban ballet revealed itself to the world with a modern choreographic repertoire with Afro-Cuban sounds. It draws heavily from the old Russian school, but with changes adapted to the Caribbean physique. The technical work is intense: a lot of emphasis placed on the lines of the legs, the way of making turns, the highest and most open passés—the most en dehors attitude and combinations of jumps and turns of all kinds for the men. Emphasis is also placed on the interpretation, due to the influence of popular Cuban dances and the open and casual manner of the Cuban.

How does Endedans fit into that tradition?  I started Endedans in Cuba without great ambitions but with great hopes of bringing together people with a vision similar to mine, focused on developing innovative work in the national dance scene. Cuba had (and has) excellent classical, folkloric and contemporary companies, but there were none that were contemporary ballet companies, and I was influenced by the few that came to Cuba in the early 21st century: William Forsythe with his aggressive and precise style; the poetry of Jiri Kylian’s movement; the rawness of Mats Ek; and the casualness of DV8 Physical Theatre, with its “The Cost of Living.” And prior to all of them, the minimalism and theatricality of Pina Bausch.

WHY choose Endedans for the name of your company? En dedans means “inward,” in French. In ballet, it refers to the direction of a movement, whether it is a turn, a sequence of steps or a combination of exercises. It is the opposite of en dehors, which is outward and is what characterizes classical ballet. I liked the name for two reasons: it expresses that this would not be traditional classical ballet and it suggests an introspective sensibility. And here in the US, people often associate endedans with the word dance and sometimes they even write “and the dance,” which I find very nice.

What is your favorite thing about ballet? Ballet is a centuries-old art that comes from aristocratic castes but has still become increasingly popular. It could have disappeared or been more elitist, due to the economic investment it entails and the number of years it takes a person to master. However, we see it grow, and good dancers proliferate worldwide.

I also like the choreographic art of the great classics—the perfect synchronization of story-music-movement; the geometric visuality of large ensembles of corps de ballets; the physical strength of the male dancer, who is largely responsible for the ethereal illusion of the female dancer; and the invention of pointe shoes to create exquisite lines and tell romantic stories.  

What is your least favorite? Ballet turning into a sport, where physical training has a greater role than interpretation. More and more, competitions and contests appear that validate big extensions, turns and acrobatics over a clean execution, with nuances in each step, organic transitions and a sense of interpretation.

The value of musicality, the emotional connection with what is performed, the concept of what is danced is ignored; ballet becomes a commercial product, a rote execution of steps rather than communication through movement. The competitiveness and desire to fill social networks with trophies is so great that 5- or 6-year-old girls are already seen dancing en pointe, with all the orthopedic risks that this can entail.

How DO YOU describe your choreographic style? My style is defined in its concept more than in the dance language. When approaching a work, I typically use elements to accompany the dance—tables, chairs, stage structures, costumes, curtains, projections. Often my work is humorous or evocative and otherworldly. I try to create pieces that take the viewer to some part of their inner experience. 

What are your favorite ballets to see performed? My favorites are Giselle and Swan Lake, works I have seen many times throughout my life and that can still move me to tears. But my spirit is closer to contemporary ballet. Giselle by Akram Khan left me speechless; Swan Lake by Matthew Bourne is amazing.

Do you have a favorite movie about dance? The original version of West Side Story is my favorite movie. The plot, the ingenious way of recreating the choreography, the use of space, the perfect use of music, the performance of the cast, everything is excellent to me. It is a social denunciation, like Romeo and Juliet was in its time, taking up the theme of divisions within society in a very well-done way. As for dance in cinema, I would mention a controversial scene that addresses the dark side of prima ballerinas: the moment when Natalie Portman’s Black Swan character grows her black wings. The story is taken to the limit and upsets many due to its crudeness, but its essence is real: the life of classical dancers in a ballet company is difficult. The desire to get leading roles, the fear of not being chosen by the choreographer, the rivalry with other dancers, the fear of growing old, the fear of being replaced. 

Looking back on a life of dance, what have you learned about what dance means to the human spirit?Dance is a very grateful art. However you feel emotionally or physically, dance elevates you to positive areas of the soul that will make you see anguish and ailments with a better perspective. It is like a refuge in a lyrical and sacred place, a therapy, in addition to the positive physical benefits that a trained body provides. Dance unites spirits; it turns the group of people with whom you work side by side into family, sharing not only time but your body, your sweat, your hunger, your physical pain, your joys, your frustrations—a guild with which you joyfully identify. It is a form of expression so genuine.

If you could travel back in time, what advice would you give to yourself? I think I would only observe, so as not to alter anything about the story and the path that helped me grow, mature and learn. Maybe delete the works that didn’t turn out well.

What are you working on now? A new project inspired by a series of mangrove paintings by my husband Guillermo López, who has been studying their importance to the ecosystem. The piece is called The Paradox of the Mirror and has the mangrove as its central theme, referring to the similarity of its shapes with the bodies of the dancers. Projected video images will contribute to the parallels between the mangrove roots, which symbolize cultural heritage and the connection with the past, and the plants’ growth and movement, which suggest evolution and change. The dancers appear in the projections, moving among the mangroves, as well as live on the stage. It will premiere in June 2025 at the Squeaky Wheel Fringe Festival and we hope readers will go to the performance at the Asolo Repertory Theater and get to know our work up close. 

If someone were to describe Endedans Contemporary Ballet in five words, what would you want them to be? Ingenious, innovative, refreshing, collaborative, immersive.