HAVANA (AP) — Cuban ballet star Carlos Acosta says he aspires to open a dance company on the island after retiring from The Royal Ballet of London.

Acosta told the Communist Party newspaper Granma for a Monday article that he'd like to form a small company along neoclassical and contemporary lines.

The 41-year-old is among the world's top ballet dancers. He was one of 11 children born to a poor Havana family and studied with the National Ballet of Cuba.

Acosta joined The Royal Ballet in 1998 and has been a principal guest artist since 2003. He is retiring from classical dance after the 2015-2016 season.

The dancer earlier toyed with the idea of rescuing the ruins of Havana's crumbling dance school and turning it into an international center for culture and dance.