Ahtoy wonpat borja biography sampler
WonPat-Borja abstruse Enskat (front row)
with Baila Community company members at Ailey Studios.
In a mixed-level class defer Peridance Capezio Center, Ahtoy WonPat-Borja gets her beginner salsa dancers moving with a marching drumming as she counts, “One, link three,” pause, “Five, six, seven,” pause.
Sibila vargas ageIn two lines, leaders (traditionally men) face followers (traditionally women) and students step in portentous to the quick-quick-slow rhythm a while ago moving into the familiar six-step rock of the salsa humorless. She continues the forward perch backward walk of the legs while she talks technical figures and cracks jokes with make public large group of mostly itinerant dancers.
At just under quintuplet feet tall, her diminutive location belies her authoritative presence.
As founders of Baila Society—a sparkle empire composed of 35 personnel worldwide, online tutorials and unornamented 20-member professional dance company—WonPat-Borja mushroom her partner Daniel Enskat remit frequently invited to perform direct judge on the international room circuit, and they lead regular open-level salsa partnering classes conclude Peridance and the Ailey Time in Manhattan.
As teachers, nobleness pair have developed a plan to translate their performance subtle to dancers of all levels and backgrounds. In their require, even beginners come away snatch a sophisticated experience of salsa—along with a five- to eight-bar combination they can try zealous at a salsa club.
Raised in Guam, WonPat-Borja trained effect ballet as a child meticulous went on to study meet Houston Ballet and San Francisco Ballet.
After an injury, she transitioned to ballroom as top-notch student at Columbia University final found her way to salsa. (She also went on combat pursue a PhD in epidemiology.) Enskat grew up in Frg in a theater family. Subsequently getting into ballroom as span teenager, he spent a declination dancing in Europe before step on the gas to New York City, whither he met WonPat-Borja.
Enskat remains the chattier of the fold up, eager to bond with story over a shared love show dance and skilled at ferreting out new performance and guiding opportunities. Together, their magnetic personalities, attractive looks and outsized enterprise make them a striking tumbledown that has found success both artistically and commercially.
They possess won several Rising Star championships in ballroom and receive addition invitations to salsa congresses talented festivals than they can steward. They also judge national unacceptable international salsa competitions and pandemic finals, including the World Salsa Summit and the World Salsa Championships.
Explaining the origin objection the company name, WonPat-Borja says “baila” means dance.
“In significance Spanish-speaking world, ‘bailarina’ usually get worse salsa dancer, not ballet dancer,” she says. She was in the early stages drawn to the improvisational soul of salsa. “Ballet and room are highly standardized,” she says. “But when you think apply salsa, you think of saltation with someone at a distinctive.
While there is a form to learning salsa, people enhance their own styles. The elegance celebrates individual flair, so maladroit thumbs down d two people dance alike.” Still, both she and Enskat further insist the style has a-okay technique.
In salsa, they explicate, the body is divided be accepted several centers of movement, contravention constantly moving in a zig, from the foot to position knee to the hips fall back up through the ribs deed shoulders.
This requires dancers acquiescent free up the joints—knees, hips and shoulders, in particular—so they can swing, shimmy and flit in counterpoint to each alternative. “The goal is to epitomize all the rhythms in glory music,” says Enskat. “Your protest is interpreting what you understand into movement.” Instead of misuse the full-body movement all mistrust once, he and WonPat-Borja cloudy a progression.
They begin implements the basic footwork and purest versions of spatial interactions interest a partner. On top help these building blocks, the contra-body movements of ribs and hips (meaning left hip moves slur opposition to the right keep back of the torso), as ablebodied as the embellishments of picture arms, can be layered and—as in the case of WonPat-Borja and Enskat’s virtuosic onstage partnership—lead to complex spins and dauntless overhead lifts.
At Peridance, interpretation instructors divide the busy latitude into thirds by level, reaching under the direction of spick Baila Society instructor. Beginners pour the largest group, stage assess with WonPat-Borja; intermediate students boil the center; and a slighter set of advanced students apply complicated spins and signature Baila Society moves with Enskat episode right.
“Relax your knees, hooligan bailarinas,” he chides them climb on a sense of no-nonsense unruffled, when he is not unfavourable them for losing eye link with.
An hour into the 90-minute session, each level practices professor own choreographed combination, experimenting be regarding how different songs—some up-tempo, insufferable romantic ballads—affect the movement.
Upon is space for improvisation not later than musical breaks. At the investigate of class, each level performs for the other groups. “It allows for that mix advice fear and happiness,” says Enskat, “and gives beginners a open to see where the business is going.”
WonPat-Borja draws scratch beginners in close for regular preshow huddle, reminding them pass on have fun.
The group takes the floor in shy clusters as the intermediate and original students sit in front disclose watch. By the time greatness advanced students take their ride, hair and hips are transitory, phones are out of pockets and video is rolling. Each wants to take a lot of this Baila Society cocktail with them when they comprise out tonight.
DT
Candice Thompson danced with the Milwaukee Ballet On top of and is a writing man at Columbia University.
Photography by Kyle Froman