Written by Rebekah Dothager and Media by Taylor Neal.
The starry night sky twinkled above the hanging lights on Whitlock patio as the instructor directed us to hold the hands of our partner in front of us. I used to take dance lessons and was a member of my junior high’s dance team, but I was a little rusty, since it had been years since I have done any choreographed dance. Still, I was ready to learn a small piece of culture at Wednesday night’s Latin Dance Night.
To begin, he taught us a basic step that we rehearsed over and over while switching to the next partner every couple runs. After we had the step down, the instructor continued to add more complicated steps that included spins, which took much more practice and concentration than I expected. We learned two different combinations over the hour and ended with the instructor teaching us the Wobble. As soon as he played the music for the Wobble, all the students erupted into an epic dance party that topped off the night perfectly.
The entire evening was an experience that allowed us to enter a culture that was different from our own. Music and dancing is a defining piece of Latino culture, so learning it helps us to understand
their lifestyle and gives us a broader knowledge of a large region of the world. Learning about other cultures is important because it helps us to build connections with our brothers and sisters around the world even if we cannot verbally communicate with them. Even though I do not know when the next Latin Dance Night will be, I highly encourage all to attend because not only did I learn about another culture, I had a blast dancing the night away.
