Marina Villanueva Arias was born in Havana, Cuba. In 1982, she joined the Cuban National Ballet under the direction of Prima Ballerina Assoluta Alicia Alonso. She became a soloist in the company and performed many of the greatest titles of the classical ballet repertoire: Giselle, Swan Lake, Don Quixote, Coppelia, La Bayadère, The Nutcracker, La Fille mal gardée and more. She also danced neoclassical and contemporary repertoire, and performed on the biggest international stages in the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, China, Argentina, Portugal, Brazil, Chile, Ecuador, Peru, etc.
Later, she coached the Revolution ballet company and was appointed as a judge for the prestigious National Dance School competition organized by the Cuban Ministry of Culture. Over the years, she helped many young dancers prepare for various national competitions. She moved to Montreal, Quebec, in 2016 and joined the faculty of the École supérieure de ballet du Québec, under the direction of Anik Bissonnette. She was also invited by Les Grands Ballets Canadiens as guest teacher, then as a rehearsal director for the ballet Giselle. The company appointed her ballet mistress in 2020. She holds a master's degree in the art of dance and graduated in dance methodology and pedagogy from the Higher Institute of Art in Havana.
