Winter Salsa Carnival Notebook

Each Winter Salsa Carnival workshop packed a year's worth of goodies, moves, styling, inspiration and more into that one short hour.

"My head is full!" groaned one frazzled but happy dancer. Don't let that scare you away. Learning not only new moves, but putting those new moves into new turn patterns challenges you in ways that you did not think were possible.

And yes, a beginning dancer can get something from them too. The instructors were patient in working with all of the people attending, and were gracious in letting their participants videotape their workshop pattern at the end of the hour.

There was a premium on guys at the workshops all week-end. If a guy is a quick learner and a reasonablly skilled dancer, then the women would have lined up for their turn to walk through the pattern. There were large numbers of women at The Friday Acrobat Party, Saturday Gala and the Sunday Party as well.

"One Two Three.... Five Six Seven..." was coming from the first landing in the Capitol Events Theatre. What was up there at mid-Saturday morning. It turned out that Ana Machado was working with iFreeStyle.ca's Angus, United Salseros' Rene and about six other instructors and students from other schools for a demo that would start her Saturday Cuban dancing workshop! What an unexpected treat.

Juan Calderon's Saturday and Sunday workshops brought a new grace to movement. While Latin Energy's Oscar & Vanessa taught a neck-drop, change of hands and a rocking in record time.

At Sunday evening's party, DJ GIO pulled a fast one on Stephanie and Mark Anthony. A double dancing circle - to celebrate the week-end, not necessarily their birthdays. They took the first dance together, then, the women circled Mark Anthony and both men and women circled Stephanie. Even the video camera guy caught a dance with Stephanie, camera on his shoulder filming away. That's one tape worth checking out. People hung on, catching that Salsa flame before it died out until next year.
Detailed feature to come.