Nina and Alfred headed to Lula Lounge this Saturday (Oct 14) to catch the live band Mapale from Colombia. We got there with a few friends just in time to catch the last fifteen minutes of the free lesson. The dance floor was packed with beginners learning the steps of merengue, and it looked a bit like an aerobics session set to merengue. We were with some non-dancers so they got a few merengue moves followed by the Nina and Alfred ten minute salsa overview.
The band started playing, and the salsa beat got us dancing in no time. The band was great, playing a good mix of the classics such as Carnival (Celia Cruz) and other Cuban favorites. Their repertoire that they went through included cha cha cha, cumbia and other varieties apart from salsa.
The dance floor is slightly on the sticky side and not the best to spin on but still very danceable. The layout is a simple rectangle surrounded by a raised dining area on either side and a raised stage at the end. The bar is easily accessible with friendly and quick bar staff. Likely due to their successful dinner/dance/band package there are a lot of novice dancers and simply people out for a fun evening. This makes for a slightly less than optimal environment for more serious dancers. There is also a larger portion of cuban dancers, especially cuban dancers who appear to be oblivious to the crowded dancefloor. So watch out for crazy huge steps and accidents waiting to happen. It appeared that the more sane non-cuban dancers stayed closer to the door. That was good for me, so we pretty much hovered around that area too.
We had a decent time and so did our novice dancing friends.
Lula Lounge
1585 Dundas St. West -- 2 blocks west of Dufferin St.
416-588-0307
Cover: $10-$15
Dancing: Friday-Saturday
Coat Check: $2 (Optional)
Our Ratings
Dancefloor: 2
Ambiance: 3
Music: 4
Dancers: 2
Fun Factor: 3
Overall: 14 (out of 25)
The band started playing, and the salsa beat got us dancing in no time. The band was great, playing a good mix of the classics such as Carnival (Celia Cruz) and other Cuban favorites. Their repertoire that they went through included cha cha cha, cumbia and other varieties apart from salsa.
The dance floor is slightly on the sticky side and not the best to spin on but still very danceable. The layout is a simple rectangle surrounded by a raised dining area on either side and a raised stage at the end. The bar is easily accessible with friendly and quick bar staff. Likely due to their successful dinner/dance/band package there are a lot of novice dancers and simply people out for a fun evening. This makes for a slightly less than optimal environment for more serious dancers. There is also a larger portion of cuban dancers, especially cuban dancers who appear to be oblivious to the crowded dancefloor. So watch out for crazy huge steps and accidents waiting to happen. It appeared that the more sane non-cuban dancers stayed closer to the door. That was good for me, so we pretty much hovered around that area too.
We had a decent time and so did our novice dancing friends.
Lula Lounge
1585 Dundas St. West -- 2 blocks west of Dufferin St.
416-588-0307
Cover: $10-$15
Dancing: Friday-Saturday
Coat Check: $2 (Optional)
Our Ratings
Dancefloor: 2
Ambiance: 3
Music: 4
Dancers: 2
Fun Factor: 3
Overall: 14 (out of 25)
1 Comments:
I have been to Lula Lounge many many times, but have never seen more than one or two couples dancing Cuban style salsa. In fact, there are only 3 or 4 Non-Cubans in Toronto who dance casino well in Toronto, not enough to fill a dancefloor. Casino, which you guys think is only Casino Rueda, is actually the correct name for Cuban salsa dancing. I think you are confusing Latin America salsa dancing with casino. A good casino dancer would be LESS likely to hit you, because they take smaller steps, they dance closer, they can move around the dancefloor instead staying in a fixed slot in one rectangle so they can avoid other people and their spins are not hard so you won't be sent to the hospital. If you dance closer, you actually see other people dancing behind the shoulder of your partner. Most of the casino the lead is when you are not facing your partner, therefore, you can see around you. Your confusion may lie in the way do your reudas. When you do the guapea (when you step into your partner), you really have to step into the person and not just step to the side and when you step in, you still have to do the quick-quick-slow. Cuban guapeas are more dynamic and often go side to side in and out of the center of the reuda. If you do the guapeas with big steps in and out without the music, of course, you will hit people.
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