I have been dancing salsa for ten years. I have gone from avid spectator at the clubs, to social dancer, to instructor, to performer and competitor. In my ten years, I have seen many great bands, dancers, and teams come and go. There have been times when I was the most motivated to want to dance salsa, and times in which just the mere thought of anything salsa related made me sick. I have always prided myself in knowing as many aspects to salsa, and dance for that matter, as possible; musicality, technique, execution, etc. After hearing all of the attributes come out of anyone’s mouth, you would only be left to believe that they have pretty much “done it all”. But, that just is not the case for me. I’ve had many people ask me which dance teams I have been on, and it is always the same response; None.
It was never a matter of not being interested, or thinking that I was too good for a dance team, or even because I feel that I am more of a leader. No, more a matter of timing. When I first got into salsa the one team that I really wanted to join was Los Rumberos. In those days, the members really made it what it was. Dancers like Jimmy Rumba and Miriam, Rony and Dinora. They just had a cohesiveness that just oozed passion. On stage they looked professional and driven. But, as I said before, I was just fresh to the scene, and would have never stood a chance of performing with them. However, as the years progressed, members began to part ways, which effected the dynamic of the team so much that they lost the “prestige” that I once saw in them all of the time. No longer was I interested in joining a team. And that was that.
A few years later, I attended my first West Coast Salsa Congress, and little did I know, I would again find the inspiration to join a team. Their name; “Tropical Gem”. Their leader; Fernando Sosa. As odd of a theme that they had, some alien/space theme in which they come down from a space craft and mysteriously knew the “language/art” of salsa; they simply blew me away. No other teams that night had the precision, synchronization, speed, difficulty, stage presence, and execution factor that this group had. Not even any other couple that I had seen before them, did for me what Tropical Gem did that night. I was just floored with the performance. However, all of that was decimated in a matter of seconds, when Albert Torres, said, “Let’s hear it again for the team all the way from Italy”. Italy!? How in the world was I supposed to join a team that’s in Italy? And that was that.
Through the course of the following years a few major competitions were created specifically for teams; The Mayan and The ESPN World Salsa Championships; still, nothing. Sure, there were a few good teams, “Ritmo y Sabor”, “Latino Xplosion”, “Pretty Boys and Girls”, and “Salsamania” just to name a few. As I said, all good teams, and yet, none of them captured my interest. And, until last year, the teams that won at the World Salsa Championships were pretty much all Colombians; completely different style. Then there were the past two years, in which I stepped away from the salsa scene to finish grad school. And that was that.
I tried to keep up with the scene through competitions, but my mind was focused on other priorities. That was until June, when I graduated and my time freed up! I decided to get back into the scene and dance again; sort of.
Salsa is not the only interest of mine. I am an avid baseball fan and player. I played all through little league, high school, and even a year in college. However, after that first season in college and not seeing any playing time, I decided to focus on my education, and put baseball aside for the time being. Well, that time has gone, and now I am back into baseball and motivated to play as if I were back in little league. But, talk about the worst possible time.
Last year, at the Mayan’s team competition, I was again reintroduced to what a great
team looks like. Although, there was some controversy between the 2nd highest scoring team and the actual winning team, there was no doubt in my mind as to who the clear winner after the first 30 seconds of the routine. Unfortunately, I was not at the Mayan when this took place, but I saw the videos of all the performances, which I can meticulously scrutinize by watching them repeatedly. From beginning to end, this team was synchronized, on time, and full of difficult technical nuances. From their line formations and changes, to their intricate patterns, I was reminded of just what a great team, under the right leader, can look like. I am referring to none other than Gabby Equis and her team, Alma Latina. After that performance I looked into her team and found out that she is a meticulous and very critical critique of her own team. She expects everyone to look the same on stage, and demands nothing but perfection before every performance. I was never more intrigued to join a team than when I heard that Gabby is trying to form a Los Angeles team.
I found out about a month ago that Alma Latina was to be holding auditions for an LA team. When I heard, I quickly spread the word to people that were interested in joining, or already in, a team. If anyone was serious about learning, I referred them, including myself. I signed up for the audition, along with 7 other friends of mine, and we headed out. Now, of course, my mindset right now is not on competing/ performing; I am already spending nearly $500 on an upcoming baseball season in a really competitive league, so I cannot afford monthly dues, traveling expenses, and other costs that are required for a performance team. However, I wanted to go to the audition so that I can witness for myself just what made this team stand alone in the performance world.
When the audition began and we were being taught the choreography, right away, I picked up on the high expectations, as they wanted everyone to do a triple outside turn in the partnering sequence; which is something that is rarely done socially, as well as all the spins being no less than doubles. Add to that, the intentional focus on the tiny stylings that they pretty much made clear that they wanted to see. Furthermore, they made it a point to add sections in the footwork pieces that focused on body isolations, which is not common in most dance teams. Needless to say, the audition pieces were great tools at separating each level of dancer (Professional, semi-professional, intermediate, and amateur). Surprisingly enough, there weren’t any amateurs present for the auditions. I had high standards myself walking into the audition, not only of myself, but for the dance company as well. I expected to see professional instruction, professional dancing, and professional organization. I really do not think anyone that showed up for the audition was let down in that regard. Everyone got pushed to their full capabilities and everyone tried their best. The best thing about the audition was that everyone left content. Gabby is a very well organized leader. She gave the breakdown of the levels in details, what she expected from everyone at each level, and even some of the hardships that are going to be faced by the professional team, seeing as how they have to collaborate with the San Diego team at least once a week. And this is where I might see a problem with creating a professional LA Alma Latina team.
Members of the professional team must meet in San Diego once a week for practice, and again on Sundays in Garden Grove. This not only puts a huge time constraint on people, but financially, is almost excessive; on top of the monthly dues. This is not a dance company in which being on the professional team means you will getting paid for shows. Sure, members may get some money, but will it be enough to offset how much people will be spending on gas, uniforms, and travel expenses for shows outside California? I do not want to take away from what Gabby is attempting to do, but it is a reality that those who make the professional team will have to face very soon, as rehearsals begin early February. However, there were some ideas that Gaby may be toying with if she does not get enough people on the professional team, which I think will work out better.
I, along with others at the audition, all agree that Alma Latina can take, even the most novice of dancers, and make them great in a short amount of time. And for those with years and years of experience, myself included, could just see, in those few hours at the audition, the potential that could be reached with this team. Even those that had been in other dance teams, mentioned just how much more professional Alma Latina was; and that was just an audition. That is how focused and intense Gaby and her team of assistants are. The audition just reinforced what I have said before, and which was surprisingly said by Gaby at the audition during her final statement; “No disrespect to the other teams, but Alma Latina prides themselves in making their semi-professional team look like any LA professional team”. Now what does that say about Alma Latina’s professional team? You be the judge.
In closing, Gaby trying to expand her team from Tijuana, to San Diego, and now Los Angeles, is an amazing and extremely difficult process. I wish her nothing but the best, and am a little disappointed that I will not be able join the team at this point in time. However, I did extend my services to Gaby and hope to be working with her and the team at some capacity in the future.
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