Dancing rueda salsa in latin house in Maroussi

The last couple of Wednesdays I have been going to latin house cafe for rueda lessons (read below to find out in detail about what rueda is).

I must confess it is great fun as the list of moves we learn increases. I find their names also really funny, i.e. Principe bueno is when the man kisses the hand of the woman before going to the next one. Also Cucaracha (cockroach) is a sharp movement with the foot like stepping on a cockroach.

Latin House
Βασ. Σοφίας 20
Μαρούσι 15124
210 8060155

Rueda de Casino (Rueda, Casino Rueda, Salsa Rueda) is a particular type of round dancing of Salsa. It was developed in Havana, Cuba in the late 1950s and early 1960s by the famous group Guaracheros de Regla and one of its main choreographers and creators was Jorge Alfaro from San Miguel del Padron, a soloist of a comparsa.

Pairs of dancers form a circle, with dance moves called out by one person, a caller (or 'Líder' or 'cantante' in Spanish). Many moves have hand signs to complement the calls; these are useful in noisy venues, where spoken calls might not be easily heard. Many of the moves involve the swapping of partners.

The names of the moves are mostly in Spanish, some in English (or Spanglish; e.g., "un fly"). Some names are known in slightly different versions, easily recognisable by Spanish-speaking dancers, but may be confusing to the rest.

Rueda is not only popular in Cuba or U.S.A., but in many other countries around the world - there are many active groups in at least Hungary, Israel, Norway, France, Germany, Poland, Russia, Hong Kong, Singapore, Malaysia, Spain, Australia, Switzerland and the UK. At least in Germany and Israel, some of the calls are in German and Hebrew respectively.

In Hungary most of the dance schools usually teach cuban style in a Rueda.

Although the names of the calls are presently the same across the board, the different towns in Cuba use their own calls. This was due to the fact that when the pioneers of Rueda de Casino started, they wanted to keep others from participating in their Rueda. Nowadays many local variations of the calls can be found. They can change from town to town or even from teacher to teacher. For example, if you learn rueda in London you will not normally be able to dance it with people who learned rueda from a different teacher.

Nowadays, Rueda tries to be more "inclusive" and not "exclusive" and, in at least Singapore, Hong Kong, and Malaysia, Callers are choosing calls to coincide more with the regular calls made in Miami, parts of U.S.A., and Europe. Also, when an instructor wants to keep classes fresh and fun, they often makes up new interesting calls. While this may decrease the fun of dancing rueda with people you just met, it makes for an expanding world of Rueda.

Casino Rueda scenes may be seen in the movie Dance with Me and in the music video clip No me dejes de querer by Gloria Estefan.

List of moves

Wikibooks has a book on the topic of

Rueda_de_Casino

Translations are in ( ), variants are in [ ], explanations are in <>.

A Bayamo
- A Bayamo por de bajo
- A Bayomo complicado
Abajo (down)
Abrázala (hug her)
Adiós (bye)
- Adiós con la hermana (with the sister)
- Adiós con la hermana complicado
- Adiós con la familia (with the whole family)
- Adiós con la prima
- Adiós con (la) vuelta
- Adiós largo
- Festival de adiós [con una] [con dos] [con tres]
Al medio [p'al medio] (to centre)
A lo cortico
Arriba al tiempo España
Aspirina
Avion
Balsero (raftsman)
Bikini
Beso [El beso] (kiss)
Besito (little kiss)
Bola
- Bola una
- Bola dos
- Bola tres
Botella [La botella] ... -> con la tapa (con tapa)... -> trunca
Bulla [Una bulla] [Suena]
Cadeneta (chain)
Candado (lock)
- Candado de mentira
Cero [El cero] (zero)
Cien (one hundred)
Coca-Cola
Coco
Coquita
Consorte
Croqueta [or Taxi]
Cucaracha (cockroach)
Dame (una) (Gimme one)
- Dame otra (give me another)
- Dame una/dos/tres... (gimme 1/2/3..)
- Dame y arriba [also Dame dos arriba, tres arriba...]
- Dame (una) con una (with clap(s))
  - (Dame) Dos con dos/una (dame dos with 2/1 claps)
  - Dame 1/2/3... con 1/2/3...
- Dame... con las manos [pasa con los manos, pasala con los manos]
- Otra (again)
Danilo
- Danilo y dame
Dedo (finger)
- Dedo saboreado (with flavor)
Dedo, guarapo y bota(la)
Dile que no (tell her "no")
Dile que si (tell her "yes")
Doble play
Doble cero (double zero)
Dos (two)[El Dos]
Drácula
Echevarria
Enchufla (plug in)
- Enchufla pa'fuera
- Enchufla, Enchufla pero no dile que no (enchufla without "dile que no") <"Enchufla" by default includes Dame "5-7">
- Enchufla doble (double)
- Enchufla que no [Enchufla y no le llegas]
- Enchufla con la pierna (with the feet)
- Enchufla con vuelta (with turn)
- Enchufla con la familia
- Festival de enchufla [con una] [con dos] [con tres]
- Enchufla p'al medio (to middle) [Enchufla p'al centro] (to center)
  - Con una/dos (with 1/2 claps)
  - Con vuelta (with turn)
  - Con las manos (with hands)
  - Sin manos (without hands)
  - Cadena [Tranca]
    - Cadena y Mujeres y Hombres ... Se Fue (get out / on your own)
  - Cero (0)
  - Seis (6)
  - Ocho (8)
  - Ocho se fue (one goes around in an "8" formation)
- Enchufla y casate (get married)
- ...la cunada,... la hermana,... su madre,... la tuya
- Enchufla por detrás
Evelyn
Exhibe(la) (exhibit her / show her off)
Fly [Un fly] [Fly dos]
Frankenstein
Gancho (hook)
Guapea [guaperia] (prep / basic step)
Havana
Helicoptero
Huracan (hurricane)
Juana la cubana (the guy from Cuba)
Kentucky
- Kentucky complicado
La rosa (rose)
Mantecado
Montaña (mountain)
Hombres derecha (men to the right)
Hombres izquierda (men to the left)
Mosquito (everyone claps above their head on the next 1)
Mujeres derecha (women to the right)
Mujeres izquierda (women to the left)
Noventa (ninety)
Nueve (nine)
Ochenta y quatro
- Ochenta y quatro moderno
Panqué
Pasa con los manos (pasala con los manos, dame con los manos) (pass with hands)
P'al medio [Al medio] (to centre)
- Pa'Arriba (upstream)
- Pa'Abajo (downstream)
Pa'Tras (backward)
Para Ti, Para Mi
Para Ti, Para Mi
Pelota (ball)
- Pelota (con) dos (with 2 claps)
- Pelota (con) quatro (with 4 claps and everyone turns to left)
- Pelota (con) loca (crazy)
Peluquería
Photo [Una Foto]
Play
- Doble Play
- Triple Play
Prima
- Prima doble
- Prima con hermana
Principe bueno
Principe malo [Castigalo]
Policía
- Policia de Miami
Ponle sabor (give it flavor)
Puente (bridge)
Rico pa el
Rollo y Guaguanco
Rompela
Rubenada
Sabia (wise person)
Saboreado
Sacar agua del pozo
Seis (6)
Serrucho (saw)
Setenta (70)
- Setenta complicado (complicated 70)
- Setenta Miami
- Setenta con las manos (with the hands)
- Setenta por debajo largo
- Setenta por debajo largo
- Setenta nuevo (new)
- Noventa (90)
- Setenta y Uno (71)
- Setenta y Dos (72)
- Setenta y Tres (73)
Sencillo
Siete (7)
- Siete loco
- Siete moderno
- Siete con Coca-Cola
- Siete loco complicado
Sin manos (without hands)
Sombrero
- Sombrero doble
- Sombrero p'abajo [Sombrero por de bajo]
- Sombrero doble
- Sombrero doble complicate
- Sombrero de Manny
Suena [Bulla] (make sound)
Tarro [Un tarro] (horn)
- Hombres un tarro
- Mujeres un tarro
- ... de mentira (change your mind)
- Dos tarros
- Tarro, pero no la suerte
Tarrito (cheat)
- Tarrito de mentira (cheat... but change your mind)
- Pegale Tarrito (cheat, hold hands) -> Se Fue (get out / on your own)
Telefoto
Talía
Three-way stop
Trenecito
Twist
Uno (one) [La una]
Vacila(la) (check her out)
- Vacila con vuelta (with turn)
- Vacila y sienta {sienta la}
- Vacilence los dos (together)
- Vacilence los dos con vuelta
Xemena
Yogurt
- Yogurt con tapa
- Yogurt con todo el mundo
- Yogurt con la vecina
- Yogurt para siempre
- Yogurt shake

External links

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rueda_de_Casino

Some shape of beauty

Monday 3 December 2007