Learn to Salsa dance with Edie, The Salsa FREAK!!
Dear Edie-
I appreciated your website’s helpful advice on Salsa…I am a “super-nice” 90’s guy that just met a woman who really likes Salsa dancing, yet I have no real experience…I really want to learn but it looks like I will not have any opportunity to practice before our date tomorrow night. She and I get along fine (though it was only our first date!) so I am hoping she will be a little understanding when we hit the floor. I told her I had no experience with Salsa but was willing to learn. She seems eager to try me out and the club (here in [city]) is very low-key. We both agreed that if _I_ embarrass her too much we can leave early :-).I am not used to the structured dancing scene but did enjoy the 1 hour “swing” lesson I took a while ago but will have to remember to lead much more strongly in this case! I’m 28 and recently broke up from a 10 year relationship where we didn’t really dance and really am looking forward to learning as quickly as possible. I am not “macho” but can certainly assert myself under the right conditions and I will try to use this as much as possible tomorrow night, within reason of course. Any helpful hints for new guys with a willingness to learn (and yet impress as much as possible) would be greatly appreciated! I’ll let you know how it turned out if it was not a total disaster…in which case I will disappear into total anonymity…
– The Salsa PauperDear Mr. Pauper,
Well since your date is tomorrow night, there is no crash course on the PLANET for learning Salsa “well” in one day, (to the point of truly impressing a woman).

You can do one of three things:

  1. Sit at the bar, and get progressively wasted and/or frustrated watching her dance all night. This will ensure you’ll never see her again.
  2. Try to dance and struggle with the basic, with all these incredible dancers surrounding and intimidating you. Watch her in misery as she tries to teach you. Watch you in misery trying to learn. You can then classify her as a Saint if she goes dancing with you ever again.
  3. Bring a video camera.

I highly suggest Item #3.

Show an interest in her overall education of Salsa dancing. Tomorrow night, if you want to impress her at the Salsa club, bring a video camcorder (if you don’t have one, borrow one) and VIDEOTAPE HER DANCING WITH OTHER GUYS. Tell her you’d like to videotape her with various partners so she can see where she needs to improve. If you really like this woman, showing interest in her improvement will definitely impress her, and better yet, surprise her.

This will be a phenomenal topic of conversation afterward, and the next night(s) to follow. This will also ensure another DATE with this woman, because she will be DYING to find out what she looks like dancing! ALSO, this idea will easily enable you to get your hands on a free quality video so you can start PRACTICING the moves she was doing with various partners, in the privacy of your own home.
Let me know how it went …

Happy Dancing!
– Edie, The Salsa FREAK!!
Edie The Salsa FREAK!! Website