LATINFEST’S TORQUAY WEEKENDERS WE SAY -
COR, WHAT A  BLINDER!

 The Vibe was there...cool, chilled, hot and sassy, friendly, relaxed with a massive teaching team.
LatinFest Salsa Weekenders - held twice a year in Torquay, Devon - are one of the UK Salsa scene’s best kept secrets..but not any more!
CHECK OUT OUR NEW GALLERY - all photos by Miguel del Foto, words Ed.

The English Riviera’s magic spell as conjured by LatinFest hosts Tony M, Robert Charlemagne, Pam Rene (left), Phil Heath, Miguel and Natalia, Mauricio Reyes and more..photos by Miguel del Foto.

IT SAYS IT ALL. By the end of the September LatinFest Weekender at the Victoria Hotel in Torquay, some 100 dancers had already booked up for the next event in February 2008.
These salsa breaks on the so-called English Riviera are growing year on year, relying practically only on word of mouth.
This year, the event was busier than ever, attracting some 300 dancers, 50 per cent up on last September’s one.
The secret is out now - these are some of the best UK events around. LatinFest hosts Tony Morrison, Phil Heath, Robert Charlemagne, Pam Rene have got the recipe right; plenty of spice & served chilled at just the right temperature, while the bill is surprisingly modest.

 Above: Pam Rene - and Right - Sheer Salsa bliss or what?

This one hits the g-spot for a lot of dancers. Great, class teaching from Robert Charlemagne & Pam Rene, Mauricio Reyes, Angus Peters and more. Headliners UKA Salsa Champion Miguel de PuertoRico and Natalia seriously impressed.
They’re are on a roll right now, delivering a unique instructional approach, genuinely geared to fast tracking dancers to the next level.
Not only are Miguel and Natalia great performers, but they’re generous instructors, with a unique integrated and well constructed teaching method.
They combined ladies’ styling and men’s attitude work, styling in partner work, standard moves, bringing these together in context with musical interpretation.

Robert Charlemagne and Marcia: Mr Smooth & Funky Salsa in full flow - the expressions say it all. hmm hmm - Sabor!

There are other g-spots that matter.
Glorious sea-front location, great hotel, generous accommodation, gorgeous food and service, linen table cloths, waiter service and at around £139 per person all in, as good value as it gets.
The place has The Vibe. Maybe it’s because these weekenders have grown organically, maybe it’s the laid back hosts, or maybe it’s because the teachers are there partying with the punters and having fun.
But the result is a no pressure job, a chill out weekender, where you can relax, enjoy, and get in as much partying and dance instruction as suits you - or if you like just do a spot of retail therapy and unwind with a walk along the beach.

Mauricio Reyes similarly impressed with minimalist, structured lessons, pitched to suit the ability of dancers. Mauricio’s workshop on Salsa rhythms and timing is an essential for all dancers.
I don’t know whether anybody’s noticed, but Mauricio Reyes hasn’t aged a day in all the years since he fetched up on the salsa scene in Birmingham.
I got him to reveal the secrets of his eternal youth:
1) Always use the same photo of yourself and claim that’s the only one you have.
2) Get a girlfriend called Ayesha, Queen of the Lost City of Kura.
3) Enter the Fire of Life at the heart of a volcano
4) Make sure you always obey said girlriend.
3) Remove portrait of self from front room, place in attic.
4) Change spelling of name from Mathusala to Mauricio.
5) Make sure your Dad’s name is Zeus, claim you’ve never heard of Mt Olympus
6) Badly conceal divine origins by becoming a salsa teacher
7) Enjoy regular noggin at the Fountain of Youth (public house located near the Bull Ring).
Mauricio will soon launch “Eternal Yoof”, his very own night cream.

The success of this weekender owes a lot to the vision of hosts Tony M, Robert Charlemagne & Pam Rene - they’re growing this one slowly, retaining the vibe, the friendliness, getting out there dancing with the punters in the evening, giving it that electricity and punch, retaining a community vibe.
Only a few niggles...the dance floor for the evening parties was dead slippery. It didn’t seem to matter to most of the dancers who partied on until the wee hours...like 4.00am on Saturday, so I heard.
And this weekender finishes too soon (only 2 nights). I understand Tony’s looking at laying on extra stuff if enough people want to stay on Sunday night.
The drive from London’s a bit much (the motorway got well and truly clogged up) - but it’s a real getaway from the smoke.
The early finish gave us a chance to explore Torquay. We stayed over the extra night on Sunday to recover from the drive from London and - by total serendipity - happened across a Salsa band performing in a local cafe. We ended up dancing Salsa in front of diners and playing percussion with the band! Fab finish to a great weekend. Book up quickly or you’re going to miss out. Ed.