tj
05-17-2004, 01:11 PM
Ok, I flew into L.A. where I met up with a friend so that we could go check out this year's Mayan Competition.
For those of you not familiar with it - Club Mayan has an annual competition where they give out $10,000 worth of prizes to the best performances by professional salsa dancers. There are 3-4 rounds with an International/Out of State category going up against locals. This year, 3 couples qualified from Int'l/Out of State while there were 5 local couples. The Semi-finals for Int'l/Out of State were Friday, and the overall Finals were on Saturday.
Turns out Friday was still Hip Hop night even though they were having the competition. A bit of a disappointment, but the competition was entertaining. Only cost $5 to get in if you got there before 10:30PM.
Like most competitions, there was some controversy. My friend and I (as well as other people we talked to) liked the couple from Portland, but they didn't even qualify for the next round. Guess we'll have to take another look at the clip once it's posted.
In the Finals the next night, it was already more crowded than the previous night (cost $15 to get in). Got in about 6-10 dances before everyone started trying to find a vantage point to watch the show. I'd suggest you find yourself a seat early even if it means shortchanging yourself on the dancing.
It was your typical mixture of shines, amazing spinning, flashy styling, and fantastic tricks. My favorite couple won it, while my friend liked the couple that came in 3rd. I do have to say that the crowd was over-the-top in their rooting only for the locals. C'mon people, at least give some polite applause! Rather embarrassing, if you ask me.
Johnny Polanco was playing for most of the night. He was incredible!
Unfortunately, after the competition, the floor got way too crowded. It did open up at one point, so I quickly asked two gals to dance but neither wanted to. It was at this time, both my friend and I decided we had had enough fun for the night as they were starting to play more and more hip-hop (as we had been warned by the locals).
Things I learned:
Park at the lots a block north of the club - street parking is free (apparently), although it was worth it (to me and my friend) to pay $3 and have a security guard watch all the cars in his lot. If you don't pay attention to the signs right next to the club, you'll get scammed. The signs read (I kid you not!):
Parking $3 Dollars for each 1/2 hour, $10 Max
Also, they're quite picky about dress code. No khakis, no baggy clothes, fashionable jeans ok. We saw at least 6 people get turned away at the door because they didn't dress up well enough. The bouncer sent me back to my car as I was carrying my backpack with my Blochs in them. He allowed me (grudgingly) to bring them in on my shoulder, while wearing nicer shoes on the way in. I'd suggest skipping the entire controversy by wearing nice shoes that you can dance in.
They check you quite carefully for weapons, etc. No chance of sneaking in with a digital camera either!
It was a typical salsa club scene. Way more crowded than any other club that I've been in (and I've been to quite a few crowded clubs). I wouldn't say that the dancers are light years ahead of my local scene as the ones I danced with, I would classify as being from Improver to Intermediate levels. My friend said he danced with a couple of Advanced gals.
Most of the better dancers dance up on the stage area or on the borders. Another good place to dance is right next to the stairs.
Other highlights:
Go to Thai Town! I thought the Thai food in Seattle is good - but oh... my... god... I had some of the best Thai food ever in Thai Town. I'll have to track down the name of that place (warning - do NOT get "medium" heat unless you expect what most places will label as "hot").
L.A. traffic is all that it's rumored to be...
In general, I found the L.A. dancers to be both nice and polite. Not really any "attitude" problems like I have encountered in other big cities. I am really curious to check out smaller clubs in the future. Next time, I guess! I think what sets L.A. apart from other cities is the sheer number of talented instructors.
Bodes really well for those of you going to the L.A. Congress! Have fun, I'm jealous!
For those of you not familiar with it - Club Mayan has an annual competition where they give out $10,000 worth of prizes to the best performances by professional salsa dancers. There are 3-4 rounds with an International/Out of State category going up against locals. This year, 3 couples qualified from Int'l/Out of State while there were 5 local couples. The Semi-finals for Int'l/Out of State were Friday, and the overall Finals were on Saturday.
Turns out Friday was still Hip Hop night even though they were having the competition. A bit of a disappointment, but the competition was entertaining. Only cost $5 to get in if you got there before 10:30PM.
Like most competitions, there was some controversy. My friend and I (as well as other people we talked to) liked the couple from Portland, but they didn't even qualify for the next round. Guess we'll have to take another look at the clip once it's posted.
In the Finals the next night, it was already more crowded than the previous night (cost $15 to get in). Got in about 6-10 dances before everyone started trying to find a vantage point to watch the show. I'd suggest you find yourself a seat early even if it means shortchanging yourself on the dancing.
It was your typical mixture of shines, amazing spinning, flashy styling, and fantastic tricks. My favorite couple won it, while my friend liked the couple that came in 3rd. I do have to say that the crowd was over-the-top in their rooting only for the locals. C'mon people, at least give some polite applause! Rather embarrassing, if you ask me.
Johnny Polanco was playing for most of the night. He was incredible!
Unfortunately, after the competition, the floor got way too crowded. It did open up at one point, so I quickly asked two gals to dance but neither wanted to. It was at this time, both my friend and I decided we had had enough fun for the night as they were starting to play more and more hip-hop (as we had been warned by the locals).
Things I learned:
Park at the lots a block north of the club - street parking is free (apparently), although it was worth it (to me and my friend) to pay $3 and have a security guard watch all the cars in his lot. If you don't pay attention to the signs right next to the club, you'll get scammed. The signs read (I kid you not!):
Parking $3 Dollars for each 1/2 hour, $10 Max
Also, they're quite picky about dress code. No khakis, no baggy clothes, fashionable jeans ok. We saw at least 6 people get turned away at the door because they didn't dress up well enough. The bouncer sent me back to my car as I was carrying my backpack with my Blochs in them. He allowed me (grudgingly) to bring them in on my shoulder, while wearing nicer shoes on the way in. I'd suggest skipping the entire controversy by wearing nice shoes that you can dance in.
They check you quite carefully for weapons, etc. No chance of sneaking in with a digital camera either!
It was a typical salsa club scene. Way more crowded than any other club that I've been in (and I've been to quite a few crowded clubs). I wouldn't say that the dancers are light years ahead of my local scene as the ones I danced with, I would classify as being from Improver to Intermediate levels. My friend said he danced with a couple of Advanced gals.
Most of the better dancers dance up on the stage area or on the borders. Another good place to dance is right next to the stairs.
Other highlights:
Go to Thai Town! I thought the Thai food in Seattle is good - but oh... my... god... I had some of the best Thai food ever in Thai Town. I'll have to track down the name of that place (warning - do NOT get "medium" heat unless you expect what most places will label as "hot").
L.A. traffic is all that it's rumored to be...
In general, I found the L.A. dancers to be both nice and polite. Not really any "attitude" problems like I have encountered in other big cities. I am really curious to check out smaller clubs in the future. Next time, I guess! I think what sets L.A. apart from other cities is the sheer number of talented instructors.
Bodes really well for those of you going to the L.A. Congress! Have fun, I'm jealous!