Panorama de la Cultura Cubana
He first visited Peru during its Independence Day celebrations as a member of Panorama de la Cultura Cubana, a show with a cast of 36 artists. On that visit he met the managers of Asociación Cultural La Tarumba.
Salseros por ExcelenciaSince 1998I want to danceProfessional background
A life devoted to art and creation.
Wilfredo Mauricio Triana Villalón's professional journey: training, international stages, teaching, production, cultural management and technology.
Professional biography
Wilfredo Mauricio Triana Villalón
Cuban artist, teacher, director, creator and cultural manager based in Lima. A graduate of Havana's National School of Circus and Variety Arts, he developed an international career spanning nearly twenty years and five continents.
Since 1998 he has led Salseros por Excelencia, combining technique, teaching, culture, stage production and community to teach the authentic art of Cuban casino dance.
Arrival in Peru
From international artist to educator and cultural manager.
Professional return
In May he returned to Peru with his family to present a new Cuban show. After this artistic period, he began a new personal and professional chapter in the country.
Circus training at La Tarumba
He joined as an acrobatics teacher and technical coach, sharing expertise in training, staging, safety and circus apparatus construction. Collaboration was continuous until 2002, then occasional as he increasingly focused on Salseros por Excelencia.
He remembers this valuable professional exchange with deep gratitude: both the opportunity to contribute to a project combining theatre, circus and music, and the insight gained into running a cultural institution in Peru.
Together with his parallel work in salsa and popular dances, this experience shaped his own vision: combining dance, circus, education, show production and technical creation in a cultural project with its own identity.
Career and legacy
From international stages to a work connecting art, teaching and the future.
More than four decades of training, creation and cultural management converge in Salseros por Excelencia and his audiovisual work.
Training in Cuba
Circus and variety arts, acrobatics, show direction, art history, Cuban dances and stage apparatus creation.
Stages around the world
Nearly twenty years performing internationally across five continents, grounded in discipline, adaptability and communication with audiences.
Salseros por Excelencia
A teaching and cultural project born in Lima has trained more than 15,000 salsa dancers and turned Cuban casino into a community.
Cultural institutionalization
The growth of dance, music, circus, education and stage production led to the legal establishment of Asociación Cultural Salseros por Excelencia.
International judge at Circuba
He represented Peru for three consecutive years, bringing shows to Circuba and serving as an international judge.
Creation and technology
He combines music, audiovisual storytelling and artificial intelligence under conscious human direction.
“Artificial intelligence proposes, the creator shapes, reality decides, and the soul gives meaning.”
International career
From Cuba to the world; from the world to a body of work built in Peru.
His professional path connects training, performance, artistic direction, teaching and cultural management. Experience gained in different countries now supports the methodology and vision of Salseros por Excelencia.
Havana's National School of Circus and Variety Arts, followed by professional work from 1991 to 1993 at Tropicana – Anfiteatro de Varadero and Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas.
Part of a stage career developed over nearly twenty years across five continents.
Work as road manager and producer during the international career of Bárbaro Fines y su Mayimbe.
Music tours and service as an international judge at World of Dance Bogotá 2017.
From Lima he leads Salseros por Excelencia and develops his educational, cultural and audiovisual work.
Salseros por Excelencia · Since 1998
More than 15,000 students and a community built through dance.
What began as a way to teach authentic Cuban casino became a cultural community sustained for over two decades. His work brings together teaching, social inclusion, shows, masterclasses, corporate experiences and the promotion of Cuban music and popular dances.
His teaching system serves different ages and nationalities, from beginners to teachers, ensembles, companies and tourism groups. The school maintains a presence at Son de Cuba Salsoteca, offering regular and private classes, online training, community activities and contemporary productions.
Institutional photographic archive
This page presents a core selection. A broader visual record of classes, student generations, celebrations and shows remains on the official Salseros por Excelencia social networks.
A multidisciplinary career
Performance, teaching, management and technology within one vision.
His professional story spans travel, performance, teaching, cultural production, music and innovation.
From artist to international manager
After his full-time stage career, he continued as road manager, producer and manager. For three years he accompanied Bárbaro Fines y su Mayimbe on tours in Colombia and Ecuador.
An accredited cultural platform
Through the association he promotes dance, music, performing arts, education and exchange between Cuba and Peru. Official documentation supports its legal registration and cultural recognition.
Technology guided by people
He applies decades of technological learning to audiovisual creation and strategic partnership direction, promoting conscious use that enhances human experience.
Institutional support and cultural work
A project born in 1998 and formally established as it grew.
Salseros por Excelencia began in 1998 as an artistic, educational and community project. Growth into music, circus, shows, training and cultural management led to the association's formal establishment in 2009 to organize and strengthen this work.
Salseros por Excelencia
The community and teaching approach dedicated to Cuban dance were born in Lima.
Registration with SUNARP
Asociación Cultural Salseros por Excelencia was registered as a legal entity with Wilfredo Mauricio Triana Villalón as president.
SUNAT resolution
The association was entered in the Register of Income Tax-Exempt Entities in accordance with its nonprofit nature.
Ministry of Culture
Its contribution to cultural development through teaching and promoting art through dance and music was recognized.
Ministry of Culture
A new resolution confirmed its continuing artistic and cultural character and its teaching and outreach work.
Cultural cooperation
The NGO Runa Yachachik documented free support received through cinematic material from the Republic of Cuba.
Summary based on original resolutions and certificates. Identity numbers, addresses and other personal data are omitted.
Historical archive and community
Stories that dance forever.
A chronological record connects his career, the birth of Salseros por Excelencia, its generations, gatherings and international reach. They learned casino dance, unknowingly opening another door in their lives.
Artistic training1982–1986
National School of Circus and Variety Arts
In Havana he trained in circus and variety arts, acrobatics, show direction, art history, Cuban dances and stage apparatus creation.
Professional period in Cuba1991–1993
Tropicana y Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas
In Varadero he performed daytime shows at Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas and evening shows at Tropicana – Anfiteatro de Varadero, combining acrobatics, music, dance and staging.
Cuba–Peru bridge1994
First encounter with Peru
He first arrived in Peru in 1994 with “Panorama de la Cultura Cubana”, initially presented in Lima during Independence Day festivities. A national tour followed, including Ica, Chincha, Huancayo and Tingo María. It continued through Ecuador and Colombia, concluding an important period of regional artistic and cultural exchange.
Theatre, circus and education1998–2008
La Tarumba and Las Ropas Nuevas del Rey
As acrobatics teacher and technical coach, he shared training and staging expertise with different ensembles. His collaboration with La Tarumba was continuous until 2002, then occasional across productions until 2008, including “Las Ropas Nuevas del Rey”.
Origins of the communitySince 1998
Salseros por Excelencia
In Lima he began an educational, artistic and cultural project teaching and promoting casino and Cuban dances. It has trained over 15,000 students and built a community of students, teachers, ensembles, collaborators and friends.
Alongside teaching, SXE developed artistic production and direction: shows, company and institutional performances, quinceañeras, weddings, anniversaries, private celebrations, launches, activations, corporate events and cultural productions.
This combination of teaching, artistic production and community life has defined Salseros por Excelencia from its beginnings.
Artistic process · 1998–2001
Fiesta Tropical Cubana
Fiesta Tropical Cubana and the process leading to SXE share roots in 1998, when cast preparation began. Performances and artistic consolidation followed in 1999–2000. This phase ended with the 2001 opening of Son de Cuba Salsoteca, starting a new artistic and professional chapter.
- Venue
- Hotel María Angola Convention Centre, Miraflores, Lima, Peru
- Choreography and Overall Artistic Direction
- Wilfredo Mauricio Triana Villalón
The origins of Salseros por Excelencia
A school was born from a show.
Salseros por Excelencia was born in Lima in 1998, directly linked to the creation of “Noche Cubana”.
The production required auditions and several months of training people initially unfamiliar with Cuban dances. Preparation began around March 1998 and included Cuban and international dances, leading to the debut around October that year.
After each “Noche Cubana” performance, a closing celebration involved the audience. Many attendees then requested private classes to learn what they had seen on stage.
This demand led him to organize and design the teaching system that later became the SXE syllabus.
SXE arose from an artistic production, the need to train dancers for a show, and the audience's desire to learn what it saw on stage—not simply as a dance academy.
National pressFriday, 17 May 2002
Luces cover — El Comercio
After Son de Cuba Salsoteca opened in 2001, SXE combined dance teaching and practice with shows and live music in the venue itself. Its success attracted television and press coverage. El Comercio invited him to a photo session for a report on Lima's salsa boom. One image appeared on the Luces cover on 17 May 2002, increasing SXE's visibility during a period of strong growth.
Continuing circus career2002
Circo Orfei in Lima — 2002
In 2002 he continued his professional circus career in Lima with Circo Orfei, performing pole and unicycle acts from his repertoire developed during training and his career in Cuba.
Stage creation2003
Mambo–Mambo, Miss
Production, creation and artistic direction for the Talent Competition at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú.
First external show by Salseros por Excelencia
Mambo–Mambo, Miss — 2003
In 2003, “Mambo–Mambo, Miss” became one of SXE's first major shows outside its usual school setting, created for a competition.
He created and directed it for fifth-semester Law students at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú's Talent Competition.
Two dances combined the students with SXE's artistic work. The performance won awards and opened a new chapter producing shows for universities, companies and institutions.
This album preserves images of the presentation and its participants, documenting SXE's early transition from teaching to external show production and direction.
Student generations2009–2011
A school becomes a community
Generations of students built a space for learning, friendship and belonging around Cuban casino.
Community2011
Rueda in the Park
A major Cuban casino celebration at Lima's Plaza San Martín brought dancers and audiences together in the city centre.
Recognition2011
Best Dance Academy
Award given to SXE by Peru's Union of Musicians, Composers and Singers.
International circus2016–2018
International Judge — Circuba 2016–2018
Invited as a Circuba international judge in 2016, 2017 and 2018, he also helped manage and present circus artists connected to Peru. He took part in formal award ceremonies. This 2018 photograph shows the presentation of an Artistic Excellence Award.
International reach2017
World of Dance Bogotá — International Judge
In 2017 he joined the international jury of World of Dance Bogotá in Colombia, recognizing his career in circus, dance and Cuban culture in Colombia and Peru. From roughly 11 a.m. to 11 p.m., he evaluated about 400 choreographic presentations spanning ages, styles and regions. This marked a new role: from creator, teacher and director to judging new generations of dancers.
Social gatherings and fellowshipAcross different periods
Dance, friendship, food and shows
Parties, birthdays, tributes, celebrations, dance gatherings and shows sustain year-round community integration.
International music management2021–2023
Bárbaro Fines y su Mayimbe
For three years he accompanied Mayimbe as road manager and producer on international tours in Colombia and Ecuador.
Shared memory25th anniversary
A history celebrated by its community
Students, teachers and friends gathered to celebrate the journey built by SXE.
An ongoing history2026
28th Anniversary — 2026
SXE celebrates 28 years with students, friends and generations involved since 1998. On Saturday, 29 August 2026, the story continues with dance, music, food, friendship and tradition.
World of Dance · Bogotá 2017
Wilfredo Mauricio Triana Villalón as international judge.
The archive records his stage appearance, award presentation and gathering with fellow judges.
Social gatherings, fellowship and community
The community writes history too.
Throughout the year, parties, birthdays, tributes, celebrations, dance gatherings and shows unite dance, friendship, food and community. Photos retain their original dates without restricting this tradition to an anniversary or one year.
Award for excellence and musical leadership
Best Dance Academy 2011
Institutional recognition of SXE's consistency, teaching and contribution to Cuban dance culture in Peru.
Union of Musicians, Composers and Singers of PeruTraining and stage career
The circus discipline that shaped the teacher.
Havana's National School of Circus and Variety Arts and his international career brought rigour, balance, stage direction and creativity to his later work.
1991–1993 Varadero, Cuba2002 Circo Orfei, Lima
Tropicana – Anfiteatro de Varadero · Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas · 1991–1993
Final circus period in Cuba
From 1991 to 1993 he worked in both Varadero venues: daytime shows at Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas and evenings at Tropicana – Anfiteatro de Varadero, combining acrobatics, music, dance and staging.
The Oasis Varadero Cinco Palmas acrobatic cast photos document this period and its acrobatic pyramids.
International continuity
Circo Orfei · Lima, 2002
Five photographs show the technical variety of that period: three unicycle apparatuses and two moments from the pole act.
02 additional photographs
Other unicycles
Another photograph of the act
Acrobatic pole
