World Salsa Federation Presents 'GringoTV'

Monday April 6, 2009

Dance competitions are all the rage these days with reality shows like Dancing With The Stars and So You Think You Can Dance filling our TV airwaves. But competitive dancing has been with us for a long time and nothing seems to get the audience cheering as much as a couple burning up the dance floor to a sizzling salsa.

Those dancers good enough to dance and compete in salsa competitions are probably familiar with the World Salsa Federation (WSF), an organization that holds salsa events, both nationally and internationally. Now, the WSF offers fans something they call 'GringoTV.'

GringoTV is somewhat misnamed because rather than a traditional TV format, the WSF offering is really a website that hosts a variety of features to appeal to dancers. There are streaming videos of salsa events, dance instruction, dance workshops, interviews and even something billed as a cyber-reality show. There are also danceable audio selections and a blog called 'The Gringo's Opinion' by WSF founder Isaac Altman, also known as the 'Crazy Gringo.'

The latest entry in 'The Gringo's Opinion' is an amusing look at a video of rival Albert Torres performing a salsa number with Jennifer Lopez. The actual dance video is preceded by Altman's blistering critique of Torres' salsa style and while the critique may or may not be valid, to my knowledge Torres has never claimed to be a dance competitor or teacher. It sounded a little bit like sour grapes to me. Actually, I thought Torres (and certainly Lopez) looked pretty darned good.

The site is free; all you need to do is visit GringoTV and register.

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