10 Reasons Why Brazilian Zouk Dancers Should Learn Lambada

Leo and Ana recently shared a great piece of content stating 10 reasons why Brazilian Zouk dancers should learn Lambada. We had the pleasure of finally being able to film them in person at the 2020 Brazouka Beach Festival in heart of Porto Seguro, Brazil. This is a 100% Lambada festival and unlike any Brazilian Zouk dance event you’ll ever experience. If you ever have the opportunity to visit Brazil, this is a definite must!

Below are ten reasons why you should learn Lambada!

1. To learn how to play between odd and even timing.

2. Lambada was highly influenced by Salsa in the end of the 80s and into the early 90s. You can add a latin flavor through lambada hip movement and it’s sensuality.

3. Strengthen your base by practicing the most basic form of dance in which all movements require constant footwork patterns connected to the rhythm.

4. Improve your level of dancing by dancing with multiple partners (2 leaders with 1 follower or 2 followers with 1 leader) and learn the game of “stealing” that allows you to share several partners during one song.

5. Unlock the reverse side of the movements. In Lambada, the students are encouraged to learn the opposite side of every move.

6. Improve your skill in movements such as turns, circular movements, displacement movements establishing a continuous flow in which transitions between movements aren’t perceived.

7. Expand your repertoire of solo movements using the Lambada technique that consists of entering and leaving the partner while maintaining the flow and connection.

8. Knowing the roots of Brazilian Zouk will give you a better understanding of the evolution and history of the dance.

9. Although lambada is not only danced to fast songs, through its technique you can improve your ability to dance fast songs.

10. Expand your network! Discover new events, new people, new dancers, and contribute to the unity of both communities.

Dance Festivals in 2020

I’ve been filming dance festivals for the past five years, and most of them all feel the same.

The day starts with workshops, a short break, then performances which usually run late cutting into social dancing, and ending with early morning social dancing.

Most festivals use this format, some with a slight variation. At the end of the day, it just feels like you’re dancing in a standard hotel ballroom in your respective city/state.

Why have dance festivals not evolved? Well, like a lot of things in life, you get comfortable. You become complacent. If it works, it works. Why spend more money on artists, DJs, or production when you don’t have to?

The problem is this: consumers are getting smarter and smarter every year. They value money and their time. If they go to the same festival year after year, and the experience is the same, eventually they’ll want to do something else.

It’s the same crowd, the same hotel, the same DJ lineup, the same artists, and ultimately the same experience. Going to the same festival 3 years in a row gets a bit exhausting and redundant. Sure, it’s nice to go with a big group of friends/performers and party together for the weekend. However, with so many options, it might be nice to switch it up and experience a new event.

So what’s the solution? Ask around, do some research, and before you know it, you’ll know which festivals are worth investing in.

For salsa/bachata I recommend Summer Sensual Days in Croatia. I’ve heard amazing things about this festival from Europeans and North Americans. It’s worth the trip, offers all types of dancing, and is worth the experience. In the US, I recommend the Phoenix Bachata Festival in Arizona. The production value of this event is unparalleled and you’re guaranteed to experience some great bachata moments with live artists.

For Brazilian Zouk, we recommend Zouk MX in Playa Del Carmen, Interfusion in DC, and Warsaw Zouk Festival. These three events are incredible and offer a completely different experience than most B-Zouk events.

For Kizomba/Urban Kiz, we recommend Miami Beach Kizomba Festival or Kizomba Luxembourg. These are massive festivals that are really fun. For smaller more intimate festivals, talk to some European dancers as there plenty of these in France and Holland.

With so many festivals competing for the same format, we’ve seen an increase in marathons (which is great!). At the end of the day, dancers just want to social dance for as long as possible.

We are excited for another year of filming dance festivals and can’t wait to see what these festivals bring to the table. Happy dancing!