Salsa – The Game of Playful Seduction

What is it about Salsa that makes it so “hot”? Why is the dance so popular? Here, I seek to explore why…

In this junction, it is important to describe the Salsa dance. Salsa is similar to Ballroom social dancing in the sense that it is a lead and follow dance, with the male typically leading and the female typically following his lead. The leader dances with the female as an extension of his body. His task is to direct her into a series of steps that incorporates spins and footwork. The follower must flow with him by following his push or pull, spinning when he spins her, stopping when he stops her, moving when he leads and waiting when he does not lead her. The crucial element in Salsa is that it is not choreographed: the leader may execute different steps as and when he wants to, and the follower is expected to go with his lead even if is it variations that she has never done before. If we see the dance as a game to be played, the ideal scenario is for the leader to direct her clearly and flawlessly into variations while executing his own steps and for the follower to follow his cue without struggle and in total compliance with his lead. Both may execute additional steps of their own to beautify and personalize their dancing (common term used is Styling), but they have to find an opportune moment to deliver it because it must not affect the lead or the following, which will disrupt the dance. Even so, there are many times when the dance is intentionally disrupted and the dancers break apart and dance separately (this is called Shines). Although the dancers appear to be dancing on their own with their bodies no longer in physical contact, they still maintain connection with their eyes. This happens for a few seconds and then they come back together again when the leader picks the follower up and leads her once again. In sum, the rules of the game differ for the leader and the follower. The former sets the pace and the latter complies with it. This is the bottom-most layer or what can be considered the ground rules for the dance. (physical sphere?)

There is a second layer involved within the salsa, which in my opinion, makes Salsa a dance rather than merely a series of steps to be executed. The factor that differentiates any series of steps from aerobics, martial arts and dance is the mind, which somehow labels salsa as “dance” rather then a form of aerobics or martial arts. The mind acknowledges Salsa as a form of dance due to its aesthetic appeal and the feeling of fun and enjoyment that is involved in the dance. There is something that the mind relates to so that all those dancing and watching the dance actually associate themselves with it. In Ballroom dancing and Ballet the dancers are focused onto a far-off something, a dreamy realm of fantasy or creation that they play in their minds as they sashay around the dance floor. This creates the dreamy, illusive and ethereal atmosphere you feel when you step into a Ballroom or watch a ballet performance. The dancers flow as one, melting together to form a series of fluid movements that delivers the body elegantly in consonance with their dreamy fantasy. In these dances, the mind is deported into an alternate realm of dreamy, almost surreal and timeless fantasy that somehow dominates the western forms of dance (so that it’s not explicitly sexual and thus appropriately suitable).

Salsa, however, takes on a different mental approach. In contrast to Ballet’s and Ballroom’s ethereal overtones, the Salsa dance revels and thrives in the present. There is no “far-off something”, nor a timeless quality that the dancers project out in Salsa. It is realistic and authentic, sometimes explicitly so. As such, those that embrace the sub-culture are acutely aware that Salsa is a sexy dance, which involves close body contact, and these people thrive in the realism of it. They daringly embrace and explicitly acknowledge the sexual overtones in their dance by maintaining eye contact while sexily dancing, constantly challenging and teasing their partners and the audience. It is a common saying that “Dancing Salsa is like doing it right on the dance floor”. This bold front is one of the attractions of the dance: those who Salsa, dare. So as Salseros, they are a different breed of people who are not afraid to embrace their sexuality, and in their dancing, confidently flaunt it.

With this concept in mind, we can now explore how these dancers express themselves in the dance, which makes the dance so “hot”. As the dance is that of lead and follow, the couple apparently flows together as one body moving to the music. Yet, beneath the surface lies a constant tension, a game of courtship. The man woos the lady with his charm while he dances, showing off his confidence and style while leading her like a gentleman; the lady may choose to accept the “courtship” or play hard to get and challenge him with moves of her own, etc. As the leader brings the follower into a series of steps, he challenges her to the moves, and she accepts the challenge by executing the variations he leads. However when they dance, they are not merely executing variations or choreography, for that would be boring. Rather, what is essential to the play and makes this dance unique is that the teasing reactions are on the spur of the moment; i.e., they are not choreographed but spontaneous. The dancers taunt and tease each other throughout the variations executed: one dancer would give the other a cheeky look as he/she suddenly does a sharp turn or a body-wave, hoping to catch his/her partner by surprise and gain the upper hand in their play. The other may choose to respond (retort?) with something of his/her own, or choose not to do anything and keep a cool face, seemingly unfazed by it.

In sum, the essence of Salsa lies in its play. Rather than merely displaying their sexual prowess, the dancers turn it into a game, involving not just their partners, but also the audience. In doing so, they break the mundane seriousness of the dance (which otherwise may be called exercise) and have spontaneous “fun”. And since this dance is merely a game, it is acceptable to openly “flirt” with different people throughout the night. Many dancers actually “play” at seducing their partners and then give a cheeky look or laugh to indicate that this is just a game, and that they are not really flirting but merely frolicking.

As can be seen, there is a sort of dual layer to the dance: 1) the ground rules of Salsa which establishes the fundamental physical techniques of how to dance, and 2) the second layer which sets the cultural norms of how to behave while dancing. These two are the socializing “norms” within the dance, and they work together – usually cohesively and sometimes destructively – to form the dance we call Salsa within the context of Singapore. The latter occurs when the ground rules are sacrificed for the fun of the game; e.g., the follower disrupts from following the leader by pushing him away or refusing to take his hand, teasing him and playing “hard to get”. However, this form of play cannot be done too frequently or she will be seen as being a “spoil-sport” by not allowing her partner to play the game.

Discliamer: This is only a very, very rough draft, so please don't quote me on this... It will be subjected to a lot of change.

Behind the Scenes: Shooting a TV Commercial

I had a fantastic time the last few days being on the set as a dance choreographer of a few hundred thousand dollars commercial shoot. The female model, Dunia, was a gorgeous 180m tall beauty! I think my head ended up at her waist! You can imagine my horror when they told me the guy could not make it for the practice on Friday... Picture me, a 159m short dwarf spinning her (20 cm taller than me!) over her head and dipping her. An impossible task rite? But I did it! Salsa style on tippy toes, hopping all along the way! Yah, and then gotta sound and look professional too... Hmm I think I managed to sound pro without much prob, but I sincerely hope I looked confident hopping professionally around Dunia!

On the day of the shoot, my 2 extremely tall charges looked marvelously expensive. Few thousand dollars gown, silk shirt, blink blink... But they looked beautiful in the shoot. The director, Humberto is a really funny guy. In his eagerness and zest to direct, he kept falling off the directing chair at the end of every shoot, nodding his head furiously. The assistant director, Roslini (I think?) speaks a load of languages... Spanish, Malay, Italian? I think he has a talent of breaking the ice, making the models relax and feel comfortable, cracking jokes... The camera men, lighting experts and all just seem to know when to adjust this or what equipment goes where without needing to exchange words! I had a little culture shock when I first came, dunno where to stand or when to move, but soon got the hang of it... Still, it doesn't look like they're working. These guys look like they live here and that this was what they were made for...

Yesterday's shoot was outdoors. We went to the integrated resort to shoot, and found that the resort have not been built yet! So we built a platform, watched a jazz band play against the silhouette of the city skyline, while my charges imagined what a great romance it would be to walk along the yet-to-be-built boardwalk of the resort where they see the Singapore flyer (singlish for Ferries Wheel). After that we counted mosquitoes and got a butt massage while the van drove us bumpily out of the construction site towards the indoor stadium for a night of celebrity-dom and cultured dance.

Upon reaching the indoor stadium, I was greeted by half-naked men (the kind with abs - we call them models)! ... And a running cockroach. The cockroaches were a curious commodity... They had a propensity to offer themselves as free souveniors to take away from the stadium, for the thrill of hearing the female shriek or male yell when they pop out of our bags. Thankfully, nothing of the sort happened, but I was entertaining myself with such thoughts before we began shooting. It wasn't until the shooting began when I recognized that one of the models acting as the news-hungry papparazi was actually Justin Lim, who used to teach modelling at Xen, and then did his model's graduation at Actfa.

Anyway, Dunia and Claudio was pretty amazing. Especially Dunia. She juz simply looks stunning, and she'll out-shine anyone because of her height.. If she towers over you, she is kinda the first thing you look at, duh. I think I'll have to wear stilts, do cartwheels with stilts, hop around like a mad dog and set my already fiery red hair on fire before anyone will notice me beside her.. haha!

I also managed to talk to more of the ppl in the shoot, they are really great and friendly ppl, who do their job really well. I can feel the happy and relaxed vibe in the team even though they were fighting against time to finish the job. I highly recommend Chris, the producer, and her team at the Shooting Gallery to anyone who is looking for someone good to shoot commercials! =)

Dos and Don’ts for Social Dancing

1. Always smile and enjoy your dancing; it’s the people who are important in Salsa. Social dancing is a communication between you and your dance partner, so smile, relax, let your hair down and just dance! Don’t worry too much if you have limited variations or have problems following your partners. What’s important is your smile!

2. Thank your partner after the dance. Gentlemen, be sure to lead her off the dance floor when the music ends. Don’t leave her stranded on the dance floor!

3. Social Dancing requires close contact with other dancers. For an enjoyable dance, ensure you smell pleasant! Most dancers choose to wear cologne or perfume to prevent body odor, some use breath spray or mints to curb bad breath. And if you tend to perspire a lot while moving to the upbeat Latin rhythms, it’s advisable to bring a change of shirts so that your partner will feel comfortable while dancing with you.

4. When dancing with a person you have just met, start by leading her into simple variations to help you to get into sync with her. This also helps you see how experienced she is in social dancing, which enables you to plan your moves while dancing with her. If you want to execute more complex variations, be sure to watch her expression to see if she can handle the complexity. If she seems to enjoy the more challenging steps, you can probably do more of it.

5. Respect the dancing space of other dancers while dancing. If the dance floor is crowded, take small steps and try to keep to your space while dancing. This minimizes feet-stepping and body-bumping accidents!

Photos: Jaztin & I (2)

Photos: Jaztin & I (1)

Photos: Jaztin & I

...took some photos for the salsa fest yesterday...

The Bdae Saga Continues...

& we tried to take proper photos... heehee

yeah rite!

My Bdae!!!

Haha... Yeah gettin' older.... And these ppl turned up! Sweet of them.

T'cher Ong & I

The Men. Notice they dun bend down...

Whereas the ladies...

this is a nice act-cute pix... haha

Rag Photos 2006

Plaza Sing Display

The Macho Men!

The Faerie Gals!

My Partner Yuanshou & I!

Party at Xen!

RAG 2006

It's been a looooooooong time since I've updated this thingy... Many things have happened. I've changed my phone to a pda and have no clue how to use its functions... yeah I do know how to use the schedule planner, alarm clock, actual telephone, blah blah blah, but the emails, radio... well, I've got many years to learn I guess... haha It's ironic how technology's supposed to save you time and make things more convenient for you, but I spend a couple of hours a day waiting for the damn thing to work... I wonder if I add up the time spent waiting for it to upload, download... how long could it be.

We did rag this year within 2 weeks again, as alwiz... But it's finally done... Quite tiring but a super good experience. Lots of fun, although sometimes I feel that as leader, you don't quite enjoy so much coz while they are having fun, I'm ransacking my brain how to fit everything together... hmmm. Must learn how to enjoy more, stress less. haha
Great fun, I made sure I took lots of pix (or as many as I can). We did 4 performances this year man!! Talk about making full use of the dance... Rag, public display, DnD. haha Anyway these bunch of people are super loads of fun to be with... Sometimes I forget how enjoyable it is to juz talk nonsense n no need to put on a professional front. =)

Something wrong wif the downloading. I'll put up the pix next time... for the memories!