I remember when I first heard about salsa congresses in Japan (of all places) in 1998, date of the first ever Puerto Rican International Salsa Congress. This was back in the day when we only had vhs, 1 salsa dvd by Josie Neglia on the market, no DVDs, no internet lessons, no youtube. It was really hard to come by any international salsa moves or news. Til the congress!
I went to New York City in May 1999 to visit the Eddie Torres school. I heard he was the mambo guru (...still in Japan. This Japanese salsero was sporting the split pea yellow, satin Eddie Torres bomber jacket...and I remember asking, 'who is that?'). Then I went to the 2nd Puerto Rican Salsa Congress which is where I saw Mr. Albert Torres MCing and some of the world's (still, to this day) young and ambitious salsa troupes like the Vaszquez brothers, Joby Vazquez, Stacey Lopez, Young Ambition, Ismael Otero and his 2 lovely sisters and Thomas Guerrero. I have footage of them all dancing up a storm. It was INCREDIBLE to me!
I learned how to dance on2 and then planned my next salsa congress: LA 2000, organized by Mr. Albert Torres (not related to Eddie Torres! Oh and there are 2 Maria Torres' too! One is Eddie's wife, one is an amazing NYC hustle and jazz instructor).
LA was a great experience. There were about 2000 people and the following years, it went up to 5000+. Performing on that stage was pretty nerve wracking! Ah!
11 years later, there are salsa congresses every week, in every part of the world. Some salsa instructors have even left their day job, or their school, to travel the world and teach/perform every weekend. And now, there are even Bachata congresses!!! (Which is why I jumped on that bandwagon and now organize the Toronto Bachata Festival).
I came across this article about this year's LA congress. Some people in Toronto or Vancouver saw Yen and Eli perform (wwwoooow!!) so I thought it would be fun to read up on them here.
Where is your next salsa congress going to be?
SalsaSteph
www.GoDanceMambo.com
www.TorontoSalsa.com
www.TorontoBachataFestival.com
http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/culturemonster/2010/06/salsa-takes-the-spotlight-a-photo-essay.html
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Salsa takes the spotlight: a photo essay
“You have people from Israel dancing with people from Lebanon,” said Albert Torres, the promoter behind this event. Torres, who fell in love with salsa music as a teen in Puerto Rico, has a hand in almost 40 congresses worldwide.
From May 27 to 30, salseros honed their swivels and footwork in more than 70 daytime workshops taught by renowned international salsa dancers. Vendors hawked salsa shoes and sparkly, sassy outfits outside the main ballroom, where competitions and performances packed the house. Each night bodies spun and skirts twirled into the wee hours as both pros and recreational hoofers shared the floor and danced to live salsa bands.
One of the groups performing was Alma Latina Pro Kids from Tijuana.
“We dance for TJ, and we’re gonna give it all we can!” said Karen Burgos, 12, backstage in her iridescent costume before show time. The waify salsera said what made the L.A. Congress so “cool” was seeing the different salsa styles of the roughly 800 performers who came from about 30 countries to participate.
Eli Torres and Yen Dorado, the 2009 Mayan World Salsa champions, came from Philadelphia to teach and perform. They are the first same-gender pair to win an international salsa competition, and the two believe the Congress helps promote acceptance and understanding.
“We want people to see not two guys dancing. We want them to see two dancers showing their art,” said Dorado, catching his breath after performing, and glistening with both sweat and silvery glitter. “Why not show that salsa can be for everybody?”
Just think if Congress on the Hill worked like this. Democrats and Republicans would harmoniously twirl and dip each other, understanding that a dance is only successful when both parties work together — no matter what their differences.
-- Amy Tenowich
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