 
Pasadena Examiner 5/12/2010
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Just a typical Tuesday afternoon at work and my co-worker asks me, 'hey, you want to go salsa?' Salsa dancing on a Tuesday night? Definitely! We worked late and then headed straight to Ixtapa in Old Town Pasadena; after we checked in, we went upstairs to the beginners class where we were taught the basic steps to the famous salsa dance. The class is from 8 pm until 9 pm followed by salsa dancing on the main floor. The dance is taught rotation style, meaning you rotate partners after learning a few moves. Bobby, the instructor explained that rotation style teaches the dancer to be able to dance with anyone as opposed to just one partner.
Learning to dance any type of dancing is awkward especially when the person leading is learning right along with you! However, it was fun even though we all feel awkward and uncomfortable because we have no idea what we are doing, and none of us know each other, it is a great shift after a long day at the office.
Bobby, the instructor, was very funny when he jokingly teased the ladies saying, "All of you CEOs, owners of fortune 500 companies, time for you to leave that at the office and let the man lead!" My co-worker glanced and me and laughed! The nerve!
After the class we all headed downstairs to mix with the more advanced dancers and it is so much fun to see everyone twirling around the dance floor! Dancing to the music also gives such a feel of what the dance is really like; that it is easy to incorporate the steps learned in the beginners class with the music and advanced dance partners!
Ixtapa serves food and drinks so this is a great alternative or add on to happy hour! Plus, on Tuesdays, Ixtapa has Taco Tuesdays ($2 per taco) for happy hour and this goes from 4 pm until close and then the dance class begins at 8! Great way to spend a Tuesday evening!
Examiner Article
Lopez Tonight Show on TBS
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Lopez Tonight Show 02/08/2010
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Don't miss this Thursday night's episode of the Lopez Tonight Show! This past Monday, we (Sergio and Salud) were featured dancers on comedian George Lopez' new late night show on TBS. We had a blast dancing to his live band and mingling with his guests celebs! The raised platform we danced on was the tiniest stage we've ever had to perform on- it was only about 4 ft. in diameter! One missed step and we could have taken a dangerous fall, so there were definately no lifts, tricks, dips, or too many spins, but we made it work!!!
This was a Valentine's Day themed episode. If left unedited, you will get a kick out of George Lopez poking fun at Sergio! The show will be aired Thursday, February 11th, at 11pm, on TBS.
Lopez Tonight Show
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By Glendale News Press 01/18/2010
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For Latin Dance Pro salsa dance instructor Sergio Leal, teaching dance comes down to one thing: the fundamentals.
“My philosophy is to really start them off at the very beginning,” Leal said, as salsa music pumped through the speakers of the dance hall of Stardancers Horizon on Wilson Avenue in Glendale.
These fundamentals to salsa, he said, make reaching the intermediate level a lot easier. He begins by teaching his students basic steps used in most forms of salsa, Leal said.
“What I do in the intermediate level is I use all those fundamentals to create new combinations — combinations that we choreograph — and every four weeks I teach them four combinations using all those fundamentals,” Leal said. “I repeat it every month in the Level 2 class. Next month, I teach a whole new set. But I always keep it at that level: the fundamentals, repetition, doing the loops. Visually, it looks like different moves, but they’re doing the same sets, every four weeks.”
Leal believes in being patient with his students, having them dance as much as possible, and having his students introduce themselves to one another.
“It makes me be myself. [I] feel confident in my abilities. That just translates to other areas — emotionally, physically, spiritually,” said dance student Lizeth Mejia of Los Angeles. “Dancing does that. Endorphins just kick in. It’s a great high.”
Most students take Leal’s classes as a sort of outlet, said his professional dance partner, Salud Leon.
“They kind of get away. They de-stress. It’s physical exercise, good endorphins, all the good stuff,” Leon, clad in her full dance ensemble, said of her students.
With a wink, she added: “It also helps a lot of people improve their social life. We make a lot of love connections. People meet new people.”
When it comes to teaching, Leon said, she likes to take an approach where the student will not feel intimidated, especially for those who may be taking dance for the first time. Leon has been dancing with Leal for 12 years, and teaching for 10 years.
“The guys, it’s fun for them, because they are learning all of these combinations, memorizing steps,” Leal said. “For the women, it’s having do all the turns gracefully, with style.”
Before founding Latin Dance Pro, Leal worked with kids at the elementary school level and in special education. He also did volunteer work for the Braille Institute. This, he said, helped shape his teaching style.
“There’s a number of people here who have been coming for a while,” said dance student Bob Brennan of La Crescenta.
Latin Dance Pro holds classes in Glendale, Burbank, Pasadena and Los Angeles.
Glendale Press Article
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By Anthony Heredia 07/15/2008
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May I have this dance? Our topic this month will be putting the sizzle in shaping the heavenly curves of our lady readers, through rhythm derived from passions defined.
Ladies, who is the clueless authority that said exercise had to be a boring chore? Let’s all hang him by his toes. The best way to shape and sculpt those lovely silhouettes of yours is to get them moving in whatever way gets them to move again and again. So why not sculpt with revitalizing music coursing through your being, a gentleman on your arm (or not), a smile embracing your lovely face, and the night at your beck and call! In order to claim the kind of curves that demand respect, drive men to their knees, and beg your little black dress to dazzle, you must make exercise a way of life and not “a thing to do.” You accomplish this by making it fun, exciting, invigorating, and dare I say, thrilling. Make exercise something you channel passion through. I can hear you all now, “Im supposed to get excited about sweating?”
Well, first of all, ladies “glow.” They don’t sweat; and the answer is a resounding “yes.” This is how. Invoke the passions and fire from within you, setting them free through the art of dance. A dancer’s body is one to behold, wouldn’t you say! Here is a big secret. Most devoted dancers don’t do much extra besides dance for that fabulous body. I personally cannot wait for my workouts because I set the floor afire through salsa myself. I let the divine trance of Latin dance melt me into form, and boy, do I enjoy every sizzling note. Studies have shown that from one night of aerobic dancing you can shave off one-half to one pound and then some (details in Health 101). That’s what I call encouragement to dance again. Not only do you carry a beaming smile, unwind the toils of the week by releasing stress, destroying endorphins, and get better at dancing, but you also get a sculpted body as the cherry on top. In fact, you even burn more calories for the next few days as an extra bonus (details in Health 101). I challenge you this month to dance the night away at least once and see if you don’t come back for more “exercise.”
I can hear you all now with all your reasons for not being able to, but I’ll do you one better and make it even easier. Maybe you can’t get to the night scene, but there is no reason you cannot dance. Take a class in your gym or through professional classes. It’s great to learn something new, and classes nowadays cater to every level of dancer. My instructors Sergio and Salud (latindancepro.com) are fantastic. They really take the beginning dancer lacking a single step and nurture her (or him) into a vibrant twirling vision of elegance. You don’t even need a partner nowadays in case your other half doesn’t want to go. Leave that lazy lump at home and twirl those enchanting curves, ladies. Classes from all styles of dance are done in rotating circles, so you learn fast by dancing with multiple partners in a circle of others at your level. If you are still a bit timid, you can even ask to observe a class, most instructors, such as Sergio and Salud, welcome observers, knowing you will fall in love and stay for a twirl or two.
Expand your rhythmic horizons to any and all styles of dance. Let the music take you where it will. Try swing, fox trot, quickstep, tango, hip-hop (you know you secretly love it), samba or any of dozens of others, as long as you love it and are left thirsty for more. I know enjoying exercise is a revolutionary idea, but it’s true, ladies. It can be done. Worse case scenario, find some space at home, set up a big mirror in front of you (or the TV), and blare your own music or DVD as loudly as your heart sees fit. Let your hair down and unwind with the rhythm, the band leader and the music as your dance partner. The passion and results you’ll invoke are as fantastic as they are liberating.
The reason this feels so wonderful is because the music and dancing stimulate the same endorphin release as that of a good tub of ice cream, except a stronger amount without the guilt, and a body to die for as a reward. One warning, though, for those ladies who opt to take the night out as their weapon of choice: beware of the drinks. The drinking can truly hamper all the wonderful effects I spoke of (details in Health 101); so keep the drinks light or drink water, and your body will thank you. With all that said and done, let us set the night ablaze, dear ladies. Shall we dance?
* All information from this article is taken from Fitness: The Complete Guide. Frederick C. Hatfield, PhD – Edition 8.6.6 735pgs, International Sports Science Association.
Agenda Magazine
Pasadena Weekly
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By Amy Tenowich 10/25/2007
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Salsa dancing is a great way to shake off your cares while shaking your bod. Each time I jut my hips to the left, work deadlines are hurled into orbit; to the right, I forget a recent dinner date that was about as fun as the first 12 minutes of “Saving Private Ryan.”
It’s a Latin dance, but it draws a diverse mix of folks all wearing the glow of having kissed their woes adios. The dance floor is rife with international goodwill, like an ideal UN meeting. Makes me think what all could have been avoided if Cheney did the cha-cha, or Rumsfeld the rumba…
Te gusta bailar?
One of the salsa axioms is that the man is the frame and the woman is the picture. As a born-and-bred Valley girl and new salsa student, I had the cute outfits but no moves that were even remotely frame-worthy.
In my few nights at the clubs, I’d gotten a crash-course in the dance — and by that I mean I literally crashed into people. I haphazardly whacked one partner in the nose with my elbow, and poked another in the eyeball. Both gave me a cheery, “Is OK! Is no problem!” I have yet to read the man’s subtle signs that give his split-second warning of whirling me into semi-acrobatics. All I can do is the basic one-two-three and five-six-seven footwork with minimal flare. My arms? They’re propeller blades.
So I headed off to salsa school to learn how to organize my limbs.
Sergio Leal and Salud Leon of Latin Dance Pro patiently broke down the basics over an eight-week beginners’ course at Pasadena’s Le Studio. Every few minutes, Sergio would announce, “Gentlemen, thank your partner and rotate.” My leading men ran the gamut of colors and creeds, making it feel like an affirmative action dance celebration.
Watching Sergio and Salud is like seeing genetic perfection in motion. They have some sort of salsa telepathy with each other that keeps them perfectly in step, never becoming a rat’s nest of body parts. I inwardly appointed this duo as my training team, but also knew I was a big project who needed a variety of experts.
Next, I walked into the Tango Room in Sherman Oaks ...
Es un mundo pequeño
Armed with some basics, I went to Silhouette Jazz and Café in Burbank, early for Sergio and Salud’s Sunday evening lesson that happens before the night’s action at the club officially kicks off. I danced with a smooth Armenian, countless suave and suave-in-training Latins, a Southern gentleman, a young man from Mozambique and a New Yorker named Ron with a yarmulke bobby-pinned to his hair.
“Do you remember my name?” he asked after we danced. I did. “Oy,” he said. “I never want anyone I’ve danced with to remember my name. That way they can’t sue me for injuries.” He asked jokingly if I had life insurance and went on his way.
At Vive Dining and Lounge in Old Pasadena, a Honduran man with plaid pants swooped me across the floor and led me into dips he must have seen at Cirque Du Soleil. He then maneuvered himself with his back to my front and reached back to pull my hand toward his face, out of my sight. I felt something warm and moist on my index finger — but couldn’t figure out what he was doing — it was all happening so fast. He repeated it on my other hand, and just as I realized he had been putting my digits on his tongue, he took it to another level: He seized both damp fingers and zapped them onto his nipples — perfectly in time with the music. Weird, yes. But I was about a foot taller than Mr. Plaid Pants, which made it all so non-threatening and ridiculous. I went with it, happy they were his nipples and not mine.
My next partner was Jorge from Mexico City, who’s been dancing since he was in utero. His every move was gentle yet precise, executed with the posture and grace of some kind of ballet-dancing bullfighter. His English was broken, much like my rhythm. That’s OK — the only language we both needed to speak was that of his hand on my hip, guiding me into a spin and catching me when I boomeranged back. The man with all the perfect steps went a step beyond — he took me to the side of the dance floor and spent a good hour repeating combinations with me until I got them … kind of. Then he pushed and pulled on my hands and explained to me how the art of resistance drives the dance. Who can resist that? With him as my partner, others remarked that it looked like I’d been dancing for years. Wow! It was like a little spark flew off his Latin fire and landed on me, even if only in short bursts.
The vibrant music and my wonderful, patient partners made me feel euphoric. I fell madly in love multiple times that night, but left without having my heart broken once.
El Fin
For many newcomers to America, the salsa family helps ease feelings of loneliness after leaving most of their own family to pursue a better life here. For me, the dance is therapy that helps erase the disappointments of a day, or a lifetime. But I also think it reminds us all that by working with partners who seem totally different from ourselves, and may even speak another language, we can create something beautiful while having fun — even if it’s just for a four-minute song. Maybe we can carry some of that same spirit into the rest of our lives too.
I know it’s a stretch to think that countries at odds could work things out on the dance floor. But I do know that for me, global relations never felt so good.
More details on this article...
Pasadena Weekly
Latina Magazine
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Latina Magazine 2006
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Sergio Leal and Salud Leon, founders of the L.A. based Salsa dance company Latin Dance Pro, performed one of their breathtaking Salsa routines at the Latina Magazine Nation Tour celebration this past weekend. Aside from performing their Matador Mambo routine, Sergio and Salud judged an audience dance competition and their on-air interview was broadcasted throughout Latin America.
The Latina Magazine Nation Tour proved to be a memorable and exciting event, held in L.A.'s Exposition Park, where free activities and entertainment, including live musical performances and DJs, food, fashion, beauty makeovers, and activities for children were featured.
Event sponsors and raffle prizes included...
*A Chrysler Crossfire from DaimlerChrysler ($50,395 value)
*An Epiphone Acoustic Guitar from Gibson ($650 value each)
*iPods from Invisalign ($150 value each)
*EasyShare V570 Digital Cameras from Kodak ($350 value each)
*Free Invisalign Treatment- Straight Teeth-No Braces ($6,000 value)
*Hair coloring products and cosmetics given away at the L’Oreal Paris booth.
The Latina Magazine Nation Tour's first stop was New York and is now headed to Florida. For more info. on tour dates please visit
Latina Magazine
Quince Girl Magazine
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Quince Girl Magazine 2006
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Quince Girl Magazine is a national-level, high-quality consumer publication that celebrates the Quinceañera. The Quinceañera is a special coming-of-age event for 15-year-old Latinas and their family and friends that includes a church ceremony followed by an often lavish reception which includes a traditional waltz performance by the birthday girl, and very often, a “surprise” dance performed by her and her court of chamberlains and maidens. Quince Girl Magazine provides an engaging combination of inspiration and information for this once-in-a-lifetime celebration.
Quince Girl Magazine honored Sergio and Salud, with the title of being one of the “Top Choreographers in California”! They choreograph performance routines for Quinceañeras, Sweet Sixteens, and weddings alike, in any dance desired, including the Waltz, Rhumba, Salsa, Cumbia, Argentine Tango, Hustle, and Swing. So, if you’re planning a Quinceañera, Sweet Sixteen, wedding, or any other type of party, and would like to perform for your guests, imagine what it would be like to have professional choreography customized for you! Make your event unforgettable by entertaining your guests with an exhilarating performance choreographed by Latin Dance Pro!
Quince Girl Magazine
La Sonrisa Latina
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Sergio and Salud featured on the cover of
La Sonrisa Latina Magazine
Photo was taken during Sergio and Salud's performance at the 2005 Summer Salsa Extravaganza in Palm Springs, CA.
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Created on 2008-07-15 08:19:24 by sergio
Updated on 2010-06-07 10:22:39 by sergio
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