Fiesta to celebrate year’s end

The beat of salsa music fills the Georgian Room at the Indiana Memorial Union. Bloomington resident Wendy Davis slips through the door and sits down to put on her high heels.

Ritmos Latinos Indiana, a salsa dance group, practices twice every week, and from 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. on Friday, the group will sponsor its spring salsa fiesta with musical guest Tropicoso at The Lodge.

Davis, who also dances other styles, said she joined the group in September because she likes salsa dance and music.

The group focuses on rueda de casino, a Cuban form of salsa dancing performed in a large group.

Graduate student Joshua Carney, the group’s president, said the dance is similar to square dancing but performed in a circle. Dancers switch partners during the dance as specific moves are called out loud.

As Davis stands up to join, the instructors begin calling out moves in Spanish to the 11 couples on the dance floor.

“It breaks down the barriers people have when meeting other people,” Carney said.
For the first hour of the fiesta, the group will teach free salsa lessons, and at 9 p.m., the band will begin. The group invited salsa dancers from Purdue and the Indianapolis area to join in the event.

Davis said she is excited for the fiesta because she prefers to dance to live music. During the year, the group performs at other events like local cultural festivals, but Carney said the spring fiesta was more than just another event.
“It’s a celebration of the group,” Carney said.

During practices, the group is split into separate classes. The beginner, intermediate and couples dancers meet on Tuesdays and the advanced group is followed by open dance on Thursdays. Carney said Ritmos Latinos will have lessons in the summer and fall to continue the group he founded last fall.

Davis said one of the things she likes about the group is the diversity within it.
Graduate student Brian Amsden, who teaches the intermediate class, said the group tries to plan an event each semester, and the fiesta is a way for the public to come, try salsa and maybe join the group.

“It’s a good chance for live salsa in Bloomington,” Carney said, “which is pretty rare.”