Distinto y Diferente: Cafe Luna, part 2

We’re very pleased to announce that we have been welcomed back to Café Luna the coming week for another night of Salsa. If last time is any indication, it should be a fantastic night, so be sure to come through if you’re free (and by all means, make room in your schedule if at all possible).

Café Luna, for those of you who don’t remember, is located at 116 North Chestnut in Champaign. It’s a couple blocks east of Neil St. on the north side of University Avenue – right across from the Illini Terminal train station. Click the post title to see the Google Maps location (the correct location is labeled "B;" the "A" is the old location).

The dancing starts at 9:00 pm and goes until 2:00, so get a good night’s sleep beforehand. See you all there!

A Huge Thank-You

Last night saw a small farewell dance for our own Leo Chan, who is leaving at the end of this week to start his new job in Boston. People who have had the pleasure of knowing Leo for far longer than I have expressed their thanks and well-wishes in far better words than mine, but from all of us, thank you. We will miss you, and wish you the best of luck.

iSalsa2 Workshop Series: Carmen Guynn

As part of the ongoing workshop series that iSalsa2 puts forward, the very talented Carmen Guynn made the trip from St. Louis to the University of Illinois campus for a workshop this past Saturday at the CRCE multi-purpose room. This is not the first class Carmen has taught for us, and we were very pleased to have her return.

The three hour workshop, which was free for any UIUC students, covered a refreshing variety of material – we spent time first on basic technique, then moved on to some more advanced partner work, and finished by learning a bit of in-depth choreography (or “shines,” for those of you familiar with the term).

With a relatively small class size, we had the benefit of a great deal of personal attention from miss Guynn, which made the material quick to learn and a hell of a lot of fun. I’d say what I took most from the workshop was leading cues – Carmen paid a lot of attention to the guy’s hand placement and how to let our partners know where we needed them to be, which I feel is a skill of paramount importance that is sometimes glossed over in beginner classes.

All in all, we had a fantastic time, and learned a lot. I certainly hope to see miss Guynn here again, and remember, the workshops are free for UIUC students (and only $10 otherwise). A big thanks and high-ten to Carmen from all of us at iSalsa2.

Friday Night Salsa at Cafe Luna

Last Friday night was iSalsa2’s first outing to the new location of Café Luna in downtown Champaign for a night of salsa. Luna’s new place is in the old train station building (the south side, bordering University Avenue, immediately across the street from the Illinois Terminal), and has a lounge area suited perfectly to our purposes. Drinks, couches, and tables were on hand for everyone there, which made the venue quite comfortable. The night got going after 9:00- I didn’t get there until after 11:00, but everything was in full swing by the time I arrived.

I wasn’t sure what to expect, as this was the first time I had been to an event with the organization outside of classes. I was pleasantly surprised to find people not just from class, but from all around the community. Seeing experienced salsa dancers really for the first time was quite the experience- you see that they’re speaking the same language that you’re learning, but at the same time that they’ve made it their own. Each has their own style, their own inflection, and watching them come to common ground on the dance floor gave me some kind of perspective on why people love this dance so much. It seems to let them speak to their personalities in ways that words can sometime muddle up.

I have to say that as a beginner I was a bit intimidated (I’ve only been dancing for a couple months now), but the mood was incredibly genial, and people were happy to teach you a thing or two if you wanted it. So, I danced a little, watched a lot, and enjoyed every bit of it. The DJ catered to all tastes- there was plenty of merengue and bachata thrown in, and the selection was lively right to the end. All told, the night was a success, and lit a fire under me to get out and learn as much as I can so that next time around, I can do more dancing and less watching. I really hope to see some of you there the next time we go out- It’ll be a memorable night!