Ballet Hispánico, America's leading Latinx dance organization, is celebrating 50 years of uniting people through dance with Noche Unidos on Tuesday, June 30, 2020 from 7:30-8:15 p.m. EDT on Facebook [1], Instagram [2], and YouTube [3].

Over the past five decades, Ballet Hispánico has been a catalyst of change for communities throughout our nation. By bringing the richness of the Latinx culture to the forefront of performance, education, and social advocacy, the company has become a cultural ambassador.

To celebrate, Ballet Hispánico will premiere 10 virtual performances featuring company dancers and students; new works created remotely in the past weeks by world-renowned choreographers Carlos Pons Guerra, Michelle Manzanales, Andrea Miller, Annabelle Lopez Ochoa, Pedro Ruiz, Gustavo Ramirez Sansano, Nancy Turano, and Eduardo Vilaro; and celebrity appearances including Lin-Manuel Miranda [4], Rita Moreno, Gloria Estefan, Norman Lear, Paquito D'Rivera, Arturo O'Farrill, and other Latinx artists.

"Noche Unidos is beyond anything we could have imagined several months ago," Eduardo Vilaro, Artistic Director and CEO of Ballet Hispánico said in a statement. "This will be a spectacular virtual celebration of Ballet Hispánico with a group of amazing Latinx artists from across the nation coming together to honor the legacy of Tina Ramirez and Ballet Hispánico's roots while looking forward, beyond our 50th anniversary."

While the event is free, it does require an advance RSVP here, [5] and donations are accepted at ballethispanico.org/support [6]. Funds raised during the show will provide artists, students, and communities of color a platform for their voices.

Vilaro added that while there's still work to be done, Ballet Hispánico intends to create opportunities for Latinx voices to be amplified through dance and education, and will continue to be a beacon for diversity.