Schools across the nation celebrate National Hispanic Heritage Month from Sept. 15 through Oct. 15 with various events designed to inform their respective communities of the rich Latino culture.
La Casa Latina kicked off this month with a performance in Houston Hall by the Dance Philadelphia troupe, which specializes in Latin dance.
"It was a good opportunity to showcase a bit of a range of the Hispanic culture and giving more depth to it than just typical images or stereotypical images on television and media and stuff," La Casa Latina Program Director Hugo Najera said. "So this is a good opportunity to have people who know about the culture [and] care about the history demonstrate that."
After a brief weather-induced delay, the group performed for 45 minutes without having choreographed their program beforehand.
The approximately 12-person troupe showcased a variety of dance styles, including the fast-paced Milonga -- an Argentine Tango social dance -- and the Candombera, among others.
Following the captivating introductory dance, the group's audience increased a bit after the show caught the interest of passersby, and the troupe held a mini-lesson for those observing.
During the impromptu session, Dance Philadelphia troupe leader Kelly Ray explained the relationship between any two dancers in a tango pair by saying, "Leaders learn to lead, followers learn to follow." Throughout the lesson he also drilled the instructions, "Take a step, bring your feet together, notice your balance."
"I was also very pleased with the number of people that got up and participated," Ray added. "I think they came here not expecting to dance, and we're very lucky to be here."
One of the participants in the mini-lesson was College senior Lori White, who described how her interest in the group was sparked.
"I was studying and the music started, and I used to always listen to tango," White said. "It's just so pretty, I love it."
For most audience members, the interactive aspect of the show was both educational and entertaining.
College sophomore Carlos Hernandez praised the event and said that he "really enjoyed the participation part."
"It was good to see tango, instead of others -- there are different kinds of dances, so it was a nice change. I liked it a lot, though, and they were really nice," Hernandez said.
In honor of Hispanic Heritage Month, La Casa Latina has planned a series of events over the course of the next few weeks.
