Daily Blog
Sunday, 08 February 2009 04:02
Written by Orlando Crowcroft

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Salsa – the dance craze that won't go away
Shanghai's love affair with Latin music is becoming a citywide marvel

Salsa can look pretty intimidating for those of us who consider dancing to be an awkward shuffling from foot to foot after a night on the sauce.

 

With its twists and turns, firm grips and quick steps, getting into the mix at one of Shanghai's various salsa nights could take more than a few two-for-one margaritas. But for those willing to learn, Shanghai's salsa scene is booming. The most well-known among these groups is local couple Bob and Shirley, who have taken their shared love of Latin dance and turned it into a career. Their school has more than 7,000 students, and hundreds of dancers now attend their dance nights.

"It looks hard but actually you can start dancing after just a few minutes, and beginners can learn to dance well in two or three months," explains Shirley.

She says that with the fast pace of life in Shanghai, many white collar locals find salsa a welcome escape after a long day of number-crunching.

"Young people are working on computers all day and it makes them scared to meet people for real. They don't know how to talk to strangers. We teach people how to dance with people they don’t know," she says.  "And many Chinese people are doing salsa now. When we started, more than 50 percent of dancers were foreigners; now it's less than 35. The rest are Chinese," she says.

Shirley is eager to point out that the nights they organize are not just for experienced dancers, although it is clear from the packed dancefloor that people take it seriously.

There is a similar vibe on Sunday nights at Zapata's, where DJ Lin's popular salsa night is going strong.
"Salsa night doesn't make money because dancers don't drink alcohol at all, especially Chinese dancers. But we have still had the nights for almost five years,"  Lin says.

Although she adds that salsa in Shanghai was slow to take off, and her night still suffers from a lack of male dancers, she says more people are realizing that not only is salsa fun, it also keeps you fit.

"Salsa is social; it makes people happy with nice dancing and nice music. It is also a healthy sport, helping you lose weight and build a nice body. I love salsa. I hope everybody gets a nice body and enjoys the dancing and the music and it will soon become a kind of lifestyle."

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