Cuban Popular and Folkloric Dance

FALL SCHEDULE 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Bliss) — Wed, 01 Oct 2008 12:08:00 +0000

8-WEEK BEGINNER CUBAN SALSA WORKSHOP
Starts October 16th
Thursdays 6 to 7:30PM
(To reserve a space in this workshop, email africubandance@gmail.com)

INTERMEDIATE AFRO-CUBAN SALSA/RUEDA DE CASINO
Ongoing
Wednesdays, 7:30 to 9PM

LOCATION:

Flamenco Latino Dance Studio
250 West 54th Street, 4th floor
New York, NY

CLASS DESCRIPTIONS:

In the 8-WEEK BEGINNER WORKSHOP, students will learn the
fundamentals of Cuban style salsa ("Casino") and Rueda de Casino,
including Afro-Cuban movement, rhythm, basic steps, partnering
technique, and the basic calls of Rueda de Casino. Students will
begin to move with greater range and ease, connect more sensitively
with their partners, listen and respond more carefully to the music,
and have a joyous experience discovering the beauty of the form.

In the INTERMEDIATE class, students will first refine and clarify the
fundamentals of Casino, including partnering skills, basic footwork,
and body movement. From this base, we will then explore the creative and
artistic reach of the form as it is danced in and outside of Cuba
today. Class will include: Salsa Suelta (free-style), Casino
Partnering, Rueda de Casino, and performance level choreography.
Vocabulary will be drawn from Afro-Cuban Folklore, Rumba, Son, and
Contemporary Casino from Cuba. Phrases and turn patterns will be
rhythmically and artistically challenging. This class is open to all
students at the intermediate/advancedish level who would like a
challenging yet joyous Cuban dance experience.

COST:

8-Week Beginner's Workshop: $160
Intermediate Class: 5 classes, $100; 10 classes, $180.

**Students enrolled in the Intermediate class may attend Beginner's workshop at half price.

Fall Schedule 2008

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Bliss) — Thu, 18 Oct 2007 23:59:00 +0000

Cuban Salsa ("Casino")

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Bliss) — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 01:57:00 +0000

Cuban Salsa ("Casino") is a style of Salsa that developed in Cuba from the origins of Son, whose contemporary expression incorporates influences from Rumba, Afro-Cuban Folklore, Hip-Hop and Swing. In Rueda de Casino, or "wheel" of Casino, several couples dance salsa together in a circle, responding to the "calls" of the leader to perform specific steps and turn patterns while switching partners in fast-paced unison.

Rebecca Bliss

noreply@blogger.com (Rebecca Bliss) — Sat, 13 Oct 2007 01:13:00 +0000

Rebecca Bliss is a dancer, choreographer, and educator specializing in the folkloric and popular dances of Cuba. After receiving her initial training in modern and classical dance at the Alvin Ailey American Dance Center, Rebecca traveled to Cuba several times to train extensively with members of prominent national dance companies, including Conjunto Folklorico Nacional, Yoruba Andabo, Ban Rra Rra, Afro-Cuba de Matanzas, and Ballet Folklorica Cutumba, and with professors from the Instituto Superior D'Arte in Havana.

Rebecca has taught and performed in a wide variety of settings, including universities, public art spaces, after-school programs, and nightclubs, in addition to offering ongoing community classes for six years at El Taller Latino Americano in Manhattan. Recent teaching and performing engagements include: workshops at Barnard College and Sarah Lawrence College, master classes for New York based contemporary dance company, Urban Bush Women, a six-week teaching and performing residency at the Lexington School for the Deaf, and six years as a dance facilitator at the El Puente Academy for Peace and Social Justice in Brooklyn. She currently performs traditional Afro-Cuban dance with Grupo Ara Oko, and recently appeared as a guest artist with Max Pollack's Rumbatap at Central Park Summerstage.

Additional dance training includes: African Contemporary dance with New York based artist Ronald K. Brown, Ballet with Merceditas Mañago-Alexander and Beth Goheen, and participation in several summer intensives, including the Jacob's Pillow Cultural Traditions Program, and a two-month professional training hosted by Germaine Acogny and her company Janti-Bi in Senegal, West Africa. Rebecca is currently pursuing a Masters degree at the Gallatin School, New York University. She is the 2003 recipient of the Brooklyn Arts Exchange "Pass it On" award for excellence in arts education.