salsa is great. but not that great.
Salsa is great, but not that great.
It is a beautiful dance, a wonderful language that appeals to many, but in and of itself is only a tool for communication.
It’s the dancer that makes any dance look good, not the dance itself.
If Salsa snobbery causes you to spend all of your time staring at Salsa without even so much looking at another dance, you just might end up looking like a programmed bot hitting the dance floor and running through the gamut of standardized Salsa moves.
Now if Salsa is your first dance, and you’ve only studied for a short time, it’s cool. Sometimes it’s good to get a strong base in one dance form first.
But if you’ve been at it for a while and have never thought about cross-training in modern, ballet, African or any other form of dance, you may never get to see your true potential!
Ironically, the strength of Salsa in comparison to other dances is its sheer flexibility. The structure and general attitude of movement allows you to integrate almost anything, so take advantage of it!
Be mindful of Salsa snobbery guys.
You turn your nose up at that waltz or swing dancer and you miss out on new ways of traversing the dance floor, or styling your closed position. Watch other styles of dance, and don’t blink or you might miss something.
And if your Salsa dance has no real African accent to it, how can it even be called Salsa?
Just the other day I observed an aerial dance class. The way they were exploring movement in three-dimensions made my jaw drop. I was struck by the lines they were creating with their bodies…and I took note.
Watch out for inspiration, it could come from anywhere. Aim to become a dancer, not simply a Salsa dancer.
If you are a new dancer, don’t spend all day watching Salsa on YouTube. Spend time watching other forms of dance and draw inspiration from there as well.
Express yourself to the best of your ability, and keep your mind wide open to other forms of dance.
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