Hailing from Cuba, Randy Crespo is a leading artist at the Milwaukee Ballet. He entered the Cuban National Ballet School at age 9 before joining the Cuban National Ballet. In the United States, he danced with the Cuban Classical Ballet of Miami and Ballet Arizona before arriving in Milwaukee in 2016. He’s performed as Karl/the Prince in The Nutcracker, Siegfried in Swan Lake, and Harker in last year’s Dracula.
How would you describe Milwaukee’s art scene?
I was surprised when I first got to Milwaukee and seeing how much art is actually here. Just by walking around in the Third Ward or Downtown, you can see our statues and even the architecture – for example, the art museum. It’s a very artsy city, and I did not expect that.
Tell us who you’d pick to be a Betty this year!
When did you start dancing with Milwaukee Ballet?
I joined Milwaukee Ballet in 2016, I believe. And it’s been amazing. I came here because a friend of mine was dancing here, and I wanted to leave the previous company I was at in Phoenix, Arizona. He’d just told me to come up here, and I said, “Sure, I’ll give it a try.” And they I was lucky enough that I got a contract with the company, and since then I’ve been growing as an artist.
Especially in the acting aspect of dancing – I never really touched that part of dancing as much … when I got here it was more realistic. Sometimes, I have to forget I’m a dancer and start just living the role even more. That’s one of the biggest things I have accomplished in this company. I feel like I have grown as an actor. And my technique has been improving, evolving. I started doing a lot more contemporary works. And it’s just been a blessing being here. I love the city.
What’s something you’ve learned in your time being a dancer?
Dance is a very hard career, and it takes a lot of determination and patience … It takes time to perfect it, and I feel like that reflects in your life, in anything you do. It’s going to take work, but if you work hard enough, you can achieve it.
What’s your favorite thing about what you do?
My favorite thing is getting on stage, just showing to people what I’ve been working for months or weeks or days – whatever the time process was – and just being on stage and showing people what I do. And seeing them appreciating my work is just priceless.
Do you have a standout moment with Milwaukee Ballet?
One of my favorite moments was when I did Swan Lake for the first time, and I did the role of the Prince. It was one of my dream roles since I was a kid, since I started doing ballet. So, it was really special getting to perform that at the Marcus Center. … But I also loved doing the Dracula of Michael Pink (and) playing Jonathan Harker because he was a totally different experience for me. Cuba is very much classical ballet, like very technique-based, but doing Michael Pink’s Dracula was more like a theatrical part of dancing. I had to do more acting than I feel like dancing.
You’ve also been involved in community outreach with the Ballet. What was that role like?
I love the community outreach we do. I was one of the founders of Ballet Beat, which is a summer outreach (series). I’m not doing it this year, but I did it for four years, I believe. We’ll go to schools and do little performances as we go to like a harm for older (folks) and do outreach there. You can see the happiness. Even if you don’t like arts, and you see something happening in front of you, it’s going to put a smile on you.
What role does the arts play in our city?
In any place where there is a community, there needs to be art, or just a way for us to connect with each other to express things we might not be able to say with words. And to reach out to every single corner of the community is essential for a city.
What would you like to see for the future of Milwaukee arts?
Just a little bit of help from the government would reach out to people that might not even be interested. Just by putting it right there, accessible to them, they could see, and maybe they’ll fall in love. I’ve got to say, art is just to connect with people, in my view. So, if we neglect it, I feel like we will never reach out to people that might need it more than they actually think.
Is there a particular show you’re excited for this season?
I am very excited about Casanova by Kenny Kendall. He worked with us before in Genesis, a sort of competition program we put on every other year. And I was in his piece, and I worked with him, and it was one of the best processes I’ve been through. He was such a sweetheart. He was such a great choreographer. He made a rather difficult process easy, and I just want to work with him.
