Top Ten Salsa Rules

As you progress in your Salsa career it is imperative to know certain faux pas and must do’s when it comes to dance floor etiquette. Follow these rules and you’ll be on your way to Salsa stardom.

1. Smelling Good

Whether you are a pro or a newbie, nothing can ruin a dance like a foul odor. Give yourself an advantage by taking great care in personal hygiene before coming into contact with the opposite gender. Most violators of this rule come straight from work, the gym, or class without changing clothes. Be sure to put on some light fragrance if that is your thing. It is nice to give a lady some twirls while her good smelling hair repeatedly scratches my retinas and gets stuck in my facial hair. For the breath - mints are better than gum as gum can give a dancer a disinterested look.

2. Smiling and Eye Contact

I've danced with hundreds of girls and their facial expression has ranged from mildly depressed to roller coaster enthusiasm. Make occasional eye contact (somewhere in between “You look scrumptious” and “You have the cooties”) with your partner to stay engaged with the dance. On average, ladies usually smile more than guys which makes a non-smiling girl more intimidating or less fun to dance with. Guys are usually over concentrated, so smiling will help you relax and be confident. I am not a particularly good smiler while dancing, but I break a grin when something goes awry or the girl is able to pull off a few multi-spins. Also, don’t say “sorry” if something goes wrong in the dance, it happens. Only say sorry if you scratch, step on, or crush someone’s glasses.

3. Do not instruct on the dance floor (and don’t be too critical in the studio)

Males more than females are guilty of trying to “instruct” while social dancing with someone. When you are out and dancing on the overly large tiles at Yuca, it is not the time to stop and tell a girl that she was supposed to do a hammer lock with an inside turn instead of an outside turn. Save your training for a private session or the studio. People go out dancing to implement what they know and have fun, not volunteer themselves for criticism. Ladies often ask me while dancing “was that right”, I just shrug ‘cause the point of social dancing is not “getting it right”, but having fun. The studio is the place for constructive feedback, but be careful not to be too harsh because you might hurt someone’s salsa feelings. In most cases you shouldn't say anything at all unless they ask. I often recount a story of a girl who was adamant about fixing my flaws and she later became one of my stalkers when I rose to salsa prominence. An exception to this rule is if a guy or girl is new and they ask for help and you don’t mind giving it. You can often leverage this to your favor. Think THEM: “Oh, you’re such a good dancer!” YOU: “I can give you private lessons” just kidding don’t say that.

4. Dress for success

Ladies footwear – Heels that have a strap around the front of the ankle and preferably an enclosed heel section. Suede if the floor is good, plastic if it is not. Buy moleskin at Walgreens to line where the shoes touch the foot. Avoid wedges, sandals, sneakers, and heels taller than 3.5 inches.

Ladies tops – You have all sorts of options here. Tight fitting tops are nice because they won’t fall off and you don’t have to adjust them while dancing. If you go flowy on top, then a tight tube top or tank top or whatever (I’m not a girl) underneath is a good option.

Ladies bottoms – You can never go wrong in jeans. Other options are skirts ranging from pretty tight to flowy. If your skirt is going to fly up when you twirl, then wear little black shorts underneath. You can also wear very short tight denim shorts; I like to call these Bachata shorts.

Guys footwear – Any dress shoes will do an OK job. If you want to glide then you have to get suede or leather soled shoes. Leather is great because it is durable and has very little friction. You can also wear converse if you are a Casino dancer. Don’t wear sneaker, sandals, or boots.

Guys clothes – You can basically get away with any top. While the graphic tee is a very popular option, I cannot urge you strongly enough to not wear a shirt of a bedazzled dragon raping a lion while on a griffin. I don’t know why, but so many guys think that wearing a shirt with diamonds and mythical creatures with skulls and a huge cross is awesome. You should try to project a more normal image.

Guys bottom – Unless you are dancing at a luau don’t wear shorts. Jeans or dress pants work just fine.

5. Be nice to the girl/guy

I guess this applies to life in general, but try to be nice to all the people you come across. The Salsa world is pretty small and not without frequent distension over dance styles, performances, teaching methods, and significant others. Dance with a diverse population of people of varying skill levels. If you get stepped on or sweated on or the dance is not very good, try to respond gracefully, the exception being if you are being disrespected – then you can stop the dance and have someone beat up the offending party.

  

6. Asking and declining

Gentlemen, ask a lot of girls to dance. Usually there are more girls than boys out dancing so you should never be sitting out. Girls would rather be dancing with anyone (including you) than not dancing (unless you are really bad ;) ). For the approach, try to make eye contact with the girl as you approach and certainly before you are only 6 inches away from her face. Extend your hand and say “Do you want to dance?” Please do not just grab her wrist and drag her onto the dance floor. Ladies, please refuse a guy who does something like this. If she says “No”, that’s O.K., just don’t ask the girl standing right next to her because she’s now 50% more likely to say “No” too. Just move to a different section of the dance floor and ask someone else. Ladies, to be asked you wanted to stand with your arms uncrossed near the edge of the dance floor. Don’t stare down the guy you want to dance with. Locking eyes with some dude while he really wants to ask someone else will induce guilt in that poor male. If you really want to dance with some guy then just ask him, if he says “no”, well then you know what we feel like now. Feel free to turn down guys if you have good cause. Good reasons include: you suffered a hairline fracture to your foot, you may fall down of exhaustion if you dance one more, you are going to get water, the guy is creepy, the guy has already asked you 5 times, or you know it is going to be a really unenjoyable dance (but do give newbies a chance).

7. Posture and attitude

You should be in a casual have fun mindset when you go out dancing (unless your mortal Salsa frenemy is going to be there, then you should be in a warlike combative mindset). Your attitude should be confident, but never conceited or pompous (a common Casino dancer condition). Your posture should be upright (like a job interview). Chin up, chest slightly out, shoulders back, knees bent, striking the ground with the balls of your feet, arms above the waist and swaying freely (but don’t go crazy). Don’t kiss your biceps or force the girl to feel your pectoral muscles or stroke her face with your fingers while dancing – this will propel you to the realm of Salsa outcasts, the kind of dancer that other dancers laugh about when they get together to play board games. E.g. “Hey remember that guy who pulled a rabbit out of his pants while dancing?”

8. Practice, practice, practice

A lot of people want to reach the next level and learn new combinations, but it is better to take it slow and let your style and leading/following catch up with your turn pattern knowledge. While technical skill is important, styling, musicality, and improvisation is what truly makes a dancer great. DO learn new things, but it is better to master the fundamentals. Ladies will enjoy a solid and confident Dile Que No over an awkward Noventa any day. The best way to progress is to get a partner or a group of 4-8 and practice on your own. When you go out, look at what people better than you are doing, and if you like it, try it out. If your partner is good, then don’t be afraid to try out new moves that you will probably mess up. Just be sure you have already established yourself as a good lead with impeccable timing.

9. No predatory dancing

While potentially meeting your future boyfriend girlfriend husband or wife on the dance floor is certainly a benefit of learning Salsa, it should not be your foremost goal. Acceptable goals are: have fun, be more active, meet more people, become a great Latin dancer, and perform a lot. I try to keep a watchful eye over foreign guy dancers who prey on our SalsaCraze women. Be social, flirtatious even (unless they are not single), but try not to give off that “So what are you doing later” aura. As the more aggressive species, males usually break this rule most, but women should avoid seducing their partner as well. A word of caution, dating from among your pool of salsa peers can be tricky business. If a breakup happens, chances are that one of you will vamoose from that group, leaving you potentially friendless if you are the one who leaves. But hey, if you think it can work, Dale!

10. Don’t be judgmental or a cultist about your own studio

I have developed an unwavering loyalty to SalsaCraze over my 6 years here, but I must confess that I have not always been the nicest to other studios. True some of them would be villains if there were a Salsa super hero movie and I’d be a Robert Downey Jr. type, but we should try to limit our preconceptions about other Salsa schools of thought. Each studio has its strength and weaknesses. We for example are the least expensive, most populous, and most inclusive studio, but some others have a higher standard for executing moves and proper styling. On an individual level, judging others is a Salsa epidemic. “Yeah she’s skinny, but she spins off balance”, “She never says ‘Hi’ to me, good thing I have better hand styling” “He looks like he’s getting tasered while he’s dancing” “Can you believe she’s wearing a cutoff shirt!” “Did that guy just blow a kiss to someone in the crowd?” are all common, somewhat mean, and judging statements. Try to be positive and focus happy stuff while observing others. If you absolutely must make fun of someone because their actions border on absurd, then just make it’s infrequent and to a very small audience ;)