For all the Latest info on Ela like us on Facebook

 

We have had such an amazing journey so far and wanted to share our experiences to encourage and inspire other dancers, performers and people in general! We have started by creating this blog of all our experiences as well as a collection of thoughts and ideas that drive us, inspire us and scare us! xELAx

​

​

Post: Recap part 1



On a beautiful sunny afternoon in Melbourne, the three of us decided to have a meeting and discuss the idea of creating a blog about our dance adventures. After reminiscing on how this all began we quickly realized that it was essential to kick off our blog with a recap of what has happened so far, and what lead us to form ELA. So before we go any further, here is how it all began….

Once upon a time on a cold winter’s night in Melbourne, six professional salsa dancers came together at an iconic Richmond pub to discuss their dreams and goals. Each dancer with their own unique flair and talents, and each dancer striving for more in their career; the discussion began about forming a team to compete in the Australian Salsa Open. Little did we know at the time, that the journey we were about to commence on would be a first in Australia. It was the first time six professional dancers, all from different schools, were to unite and represent Melbourne as a team. After everyone buzzing around with excitement, ideas lead to decisions and the team ‘Soy El Ritmo’ (I am Rhythm) was formed.

Soy El Ritmo then set out to reach their first goal – competing at the Australian Salsa Open. Training began and over the next few months the team created a routine they were all proud of and confidant to compete with. Soy El Ritmo headed off to Sydney to represent Melbourne, and after an incredible time performing their much loved routine they all left Sydney as Australian Salsa Champions.

The pride we all felt was not so much about winning the Australian title, but more about the accomplishment of working together as team. Each dancer brought something special to the team, and our shared passion for salsa and music fueled us to compete fiercely and strive for our best.

After receiving so much incredible feedback from our Australian win, we decided to set our sights even higher – The World Salsa Championships in Hong Kong.  It was time to step up our routine! In training we pulled apart and reconstructed our routine, making all the necessary improvements and adjustments to choreography, costumes and our song. Along with a new and improved team name ‘Ritmo Sabroso’ we then jetted off to compete in Hong Kong!

Needless to say, we had one of the most incredible and most memorable adventures of our lives. From the celebrative cheeky champas at Melbourne airport (we couldn’t believe we had made it!) to the late night market shopping and team dinners in tiny little restaurants in alley ways off the beaten track – we were all so grateful and proud to have made it to Hong Kong.

After a few days of sightseeing, we began training in a dance studio on Hong Kong Island which overlooked a very misty and foggy Victoria Harbour. Before we knew it was the first day of competition. Walking into the Hong Kong Convention Centre we had no idea what to expect. Our nerves were quickly put to rest as soon as we met all our fellow competitors from all over the world. Everyone was so friendly, and much to our delight the fun began immediately!

However it is important to mention that we are human after all and competing on a world stage was also one of the most stressful things that we have ever done!
The mix of nerves, excitement, anxiousness and pressure that comes with competing is certainly a challenge to overcome. But we were lucky. We were lucky because we had a team with such a great bond, and also a team with quite a flair for comedy, so constant laughter relaxed us completely. We were also very blessed to have the support of so many other Australians who were competing in other categories who had also made the trip to Hong Kong.

After lots of training, many laughs, a few sleepless nights and the occasional “almost breakdown” moment, we went on the stage for the finals of the World Salsa Championships. We hear “Shabbat” (our ridiculous team call to get into starting position) and off we went. In a flash it was over - it’s amazing how months of training and hard work results in a three minute routine which finishes as quickly as it starts. A blur of rhinestones, feathers, speedy leg work (and a couple of winks!) and we had done it. In the interest of trying to keep this brief, let’s skip the Today Tonight rendition. We won! So we were we were crowned the 2012 World Team Salsa Champions – the very first Australian Team to win a World Title.

Once we arrived back in Australia and recovered from our crazy and inspiring week in Hong Kong, we (Ebony, Laura, Anika) had formed a bond that was stronger than before. As we reflected on our experience together we realized we had something really special and creating and working together was just so EASY. All accomplished dancers in our own right; we became consumed with brain storming about what the three of us as strong female street Latin dancers could create.
One day a spontaneous decision to email our favourite Australian band opened the biggest door of all…because whaddya know?! They wrote back…

xELAx