Mission Statement Our main goal is to popularize Rueda de Casino in Ann Arbor and in doing so, to help enrich the variety of Latin dance around the Ann Arbor community.

History of the Organization The MSalsa dance group was formed in the fall of 2000 by a group of graduate students at the University of Michigan and has been building up club members since then. We actively participate in on- and off-campus events by offering short performances and salsa lessons and educating the community about Rueda de Casino. Do you want to make your event a special occasion? Check out Hiring MSalsa.

About Rueda de Casino Rueda de Casino, or simply Rueda, is an ensemble (but still unchoreographed!) form of salsa in which lots of couples dance interactively in a circle. It started during the 1950's in El Casino Deportivo, a social club in Havana. Rueda moves are built on many of the kinds of turns and steps done in ordinary 1-on-1 salsa dancing. The dance is directed by a circle leader who chooses the moves on-the-fly and calls them out for the rest of the dancers to execute.

One of the main differences between Rueda and 1-on-1 salsa is that in Rueda there are moves that let the dancers change partners in very dynamic ways throughout the song. Another difference is that the dancers have to be responsive not only to their current partners, but also to the circle leader. An extra level of concentration is needed so that they can keep up with the moves that the leader spontaneously calls out.

MSalsa Founders

Danny Almirall	Sonia Zeledon
Joel Rodriguez	Matt Jacobson