“Head high, smile, and good luck everyone. It’s show time.” – Framboyan Dance Team. Dance Sport, located at 22nd West and 34th Street in Manhattan was ready to open their doors to all New Yorkers. It was the Grand Opening of “Palladium Sundays NYC”, an exciting Salsa event that gives Dancers the opportunity to dance and flourish.
This was a special night for all Salseros’ and Salseras’, but especially for Framboyan Dance Team, who were debuting their very first routine. Backstage, you could feel the nerves kicking in as Dancers paced back and forth with much concentration in their minds through their face expressions. Make up, hair, and outfits were beautifully detailed with purple and gold sequins. They were ready to sparkle on in front of a whole crowd.
As soon Framboyan Dance Team stepped out the big stage, they captivated the crowd with Suzy Q’s, spins, cross body leads, and sophisticated turns. The crowd was cheering and shouting out with excitement move after move. You can feel how much energy, thought, and dedication came from every Dancer out there. There was no spec of mistakes for the eye to catch but the glow of their smiles.
Overall everyone’s great performance, I reached out to two of my favorite Dancers from Framboyan Dance Team. I was intrigued by their artwork and wanted to figure out the time and effort that was put in to make such an extraordinary choreography. The first Dancer I had the pleasure speaking with is Andrea Rosado. Andrea Rosado has been Salsa dancing since the age of 18. She is a professional Salsa Dancer who performed in one of the greatest Salsa events of New York, “The New York International Salsa Congress”. I began to compliment her for an amazing show and asked her, “How long did it take the team to come up with this choreography, was it easy?”
“It wasn’t easy. It actually took us a little longer than we anticipated. We had at least 2-3 months of practice. – Rosado said.
“Was it easy to cope with the team?” – I asked.
“Yes and no. Everyone’s schedule is just so different so it was hard to find the right time to meet… However, the great thing is that everyone made the effort to sacrifice their free time for the team. It’s great to dance with people who feel the same passion.” – Rosado said.
“ How do you manage to your time from Salsa dancing and your daily life chores?” I asked.
“I do the best that I can. I rush my way left and right. Sleep late sometimes. It makes me feel a little robotic.” –Rosado says with a little laughter.
I noticed that aside from the perks of dancing your heart out, the life of a Salsa Dancer is not as easy as it seems. In fact, it’s a challenge. It requires a lot of time, sleepless nights, and work. And when it’s difficult to find the right time schedules with your team members, it can sometimes be troubling for the team as a whole. “At the end of the day it is all worth it. The time, effort, and dedication we put into made the night happen.” Rosado said.
I also interviewed Luiggi Augusto. He is a college student and previous Salsa Dancer at Lorenz Latin Dance Studio, Glendale. He joined the Framboyan Dance Team wanting to flourish in the Salsa Scene. I began to ask him, “ How is the Salsa dancing life style?”
“Well I think a lot of us can pretty much say that it’s hard and hectic but wonderful.” – Augusto said.
“ What are some of the positives and negatives that you face?” – I asked.
“ The negative is that it is time consuming and unfortunately we don’t get paid for dancing. I think going to school full-time, working, and salsa dancing is tough. The positive is that when you do something you love, it never feels like work.” – Augusto said.
Many may perceive Salsa dancers like Augusto to be big money makers out in Manhattan but in reality, most Salsa Dancers dance for nothing in return. Behind their wonderful performance in the big show at Dance sport, are tough lifestyles. They work, go to school full-time, and rush left and right in hopes to catch up with the time like every New Yorker.
Salsa Dancing is a lifestyle. A lifestyle that is hard to keep up with. Nonetheless, it brings great rewards. Rewards like making people smile from ear to ear when they see the love and passion a Dancer incorporates into the dance floor.