Eduardo Vilaro, Chief Executive Officer and Artistic Director of Ballet Hispánico, will receive the NYSAFLT Culture through the Arts Award. Mr. Vilaro was nominated by Jenny Delfini and selected by the awards committee. The award will be presented at the banquet by President of the New York State Association of Foreign Language Teachers, Inc., Candace Blach, on October 21, 2016.

This award is given annually to a person who has spread the message of language and culture through the arts. As the recipient of this award, Mr. Vilaro will be honored at NYSAFLT’s Annual Conference Awards Banquet, to be held on Friday, October 21, 2016 in Liverpool, NY.

EDUARDO VILARO joined Ballet Hispánico as Artistic Director in August 2009, becoming only the second person to head the company since it was founded in 1970. In 2015, Mr. Vilaro took on the additional role of Chief Executive Officer of Ballet Hispánico. He has been part of the Ballet Hispánico family since 1985 as a principal dancer and educator, after which he began a ten-year record of achievement as Founder and Artistic Director of Luna Negra Dance Theater in Chicago. Mr. Vilaro has infused Ballet Hispánico’s legacy with a bold and eclectic brand of contemporary dance that reflects America’s changing cultural landscape. Born in Cuba and raised in New York from the age of six, he is a frequent speaker on the merits of cultural diversity and dance education.

Mr. Vilaro’s own choreography is devoted to capturing the spiritual, sensual and historical essence of the Latino cultures. He created over 20 ballets for Luna Negra and has received commissions from the Ravinia Festival, the Chicago Sinfonietta, the Grant Park Festival, the Lexington Ballet and the Chicago Symphony. In 2001, he was a recipient of a Ruth Page Award for choreography, and in 2003, he was honored for his choreographic work at Panama’s II International Festival of Ballet. In 2016, he was inducted into the Bronx Walk of Fame.

ABOUT BALLET HISPÁNICO

Celebrating over 45 years of bringing individuals and communities together to celebrate and explore Latino cultures, Ballet Hispánico is the new expression of American contemporary dance. Led by Artistic Director & CEO Eduardo Vilaro, the Company has produced multifaceted performances that have featured master works by Nacho Duato, cutting-edge premieres by Cayetano Soto and Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, and live music collaborations with renowned artists such as Paquito D’Rivera and Ruben Blades—to name a notable few. Ballet Hispánico has performed for audiences totaling over 3 million, throughout 11 countries, and on 3 continents, and its impact is achieved through world-class productions, innovative education and dance training programs, and community engagement. For more information, visit www.ballethispanico.org.