Lydia Diaz Cruz was aPrima Ballerina who started dancing inHavana,Cuba, and trained with Fernando Alonso andAlicia Alonso. As a young dancer, she was talent-spotted by a well-known British dancer and teacher from an earlier era, DamePhyllis Bedells, who traveled to Cuba and regarded her as the most naturally gifted dancer she had seen sinceMargot Fonteyn. Early marriage and exile from Cuba in the wake of theCastro revolution put a halt to her career, which she resumed after the birth of her third child in the early 1960s. She went on to dance in theUnited States with Ballet Concerto inMiami, became principal dancer with theNational Ballet of Washington, D.C., and performed in principal guest roles with theNational Ballet of Venezuela,Washington Ballet,Ballet Spectacular. She danced alongside many of the great artists of the day, including Margot Fonteyn andMelissa Hayden, among many others.
She is probably best known for her role inThe Dying Swan, a version that is closer to that ofMaya Plisetskaya than the famous early one byAnna Pavlova; many who saw it proclaimed it even more memorable than those of her illustrious predecessors. It was her signature performance, and she danced the piece to the end of her career with undiminished skill and fulsome acclaim from audiences. She was partnered by many of the greatest male dancers of the 20th century, includingFernando Bujones,Peter Martins,Jacques d'Amboise,Edward Villella,Ivan Nagy, andRoyes Fernandez. In 1991, she was honored in the United States Congressional Record[1] and byMiami City Ballet, of which she was a founding board member. She died on January 27, 2025 in Miami, Florida.
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