Saturday's 26 deg. C weather was just the warm-up for Toronto Dance Salsa's 2009 Competition at 6 Degrees.
Nine brave couples; Maysa & Dan; Eva & Derek; Mridu & Elton; Michelle & Bobby; Winnie & Manuel; Julia & Vincent; Marta & Alex; Stephanie & Nick; Karen & John put it out before the crowd and the judges.
With 10% of their score coming from the crowd, the competitors worked their crowd appeal to the max. And the crowd rose to the occasion, wildly cheering for their favorites.
Wooing the crowd is one thing, scoring points with the judges is another. And this year's panel are especially sharp.
United Salseros' Rene Delgado and Teddy Olaso; iFreeStyle.ca's Angus Dirnbeck; Latin Energy's Vanesa Stay; Latin Groove Productions' Oscar Naranjo watched each couple, discerning what subtle points would separate first from fourth, second from fifth, deciding which couples would advance to the 31 May Finals at Six Degrees.
Everyone danced to a Caribbean flavored mid-tempo song and nine different interpretations kept everyone engaged and waiting to see what would be coming next.
As the judges tallied the results, Latin Groove Productions's kids gave everyone a peek into salsa's future.
When the dust settled, five couples will be advancing to the semi finals. In no order they are: Winnie & Manuel; Maysa & Dan; Mridu & Elton; Marta & Alex; Karen & John.
Will John 's third time be a charm? Or will Mridu & Elton drive it on to first and win loot that includes full passes to the Canada Salsa Congress, passes to the Miami Salsa Congress, dancing shoes, passes to Six Degrees' Salsa Tuesdays and more.
Short videos coming to SalsaTO's My Space
Catch the 2007 fun here!
Sponsors for the evening include: Plaza Flamingo, the Miami Salsa Congress, Addicted2DanceShoes.com, CWDanceShoes.com, El Rancho, Lula, Peridot Resto Lounge, GabelliniShoes.com, The CanadaSalsaCongress.com, TwosomeDance.com, Alice Wong and Mary Kay Beauty Consultants.
