IHSC 2001 MARCH UPDATE
The International Hustle and Salsa Competition (IHSC) will be held April 5-8, 2001 at the Radisson Deauville Hotel, 6701 Collins.Avenue (http://www.hustleandsalsa.com/accomodations.html) on Miami Beach, on the Atlantic Ocean, with a 26,000 square foot ballroom, and a huge pool.
Our web page (http://www.hustleandsalsa.com) is up and we have finalized our event workshop and event schedules. For tickets and registration forms go to http://www.hustleandsalsa.com/ticketsales.html The deadline for the early bird prices expires TODAY, March 1, 2001. We will accept the discounted rates through Monday, MARCH 5 to allow you to mail or fax your registration form in to IHSC 56 N. Fed. Hwy., Dania, Fl. 33004 , or fax 954-927-9010. After Monday all ticket packages are $20 more expensive.
To find out what you need to know about the competitions rules look at: http://www.hustleandsalsa.com/rules.html You must have your competition entry forms submitted no later than April1, 2001. No exceptions. We need time to get all of the competitors and entry forms organized and scheduled so the event runs smooth and on time.
The Radisson Deauville Hotel is SOLD OUT, with over 250 of the 400 rooms of the hotel being used for our convention group. We have an overflow hotel nearby that has 25 rooms on hold until March 15. Call the Holiday Inn at 800-519-3555 located at 6060 Indian Creek Drive, about 6 blocks from our convention. The Holiday Inn ( http://www.holidayinnNMB.com ) will honor our convention rate of $109 per night. If you haven't made your room reservations, you are out of time!
Airfares will be getting harder to get, so now is the time to secure your travel arrangements. If you need assistance, SalsaWeb.com (http://www.salsaweb.com) has a travel service that is helping salseros with their travel from out-of-town, and IHSC founder Katie Marlow is a travel agent with Mile High travel (954-928-0600) and will be glad to help you. OK kids, wake up and smell the Ocean…get on the web and start making your reservations! Remember to check airfares into Ft. Lauderdale as many fares are lower there, and you can get a rental car for $25 per day to get back and forth. Supershuttle Vans are available from Miami International Airport to the Deauville for only $13 each way per person. Once you are at the hotel there are plenty of restaurants and services within a three block radius of the hotel. So, you do not need a car unless you plan to sightsee.
Our DJ's for our weekend will be Bobby Morales playing hustle and Latin music. Bobby is one of New York's most prominent DJ's and emcees and deejays at Hustle USA each year. Henry Knowles is the DJ for New York's Copa Night Club and is Eddie Torres's (salsa king) manager. Henry plays the cutting edge of salsa and merengue music. Also playing will be Alberth, the house DJ for Salsa Lovers, and IHSC Organizer Randy Atlas from A Sound Trek, and Nick Lotiere from New York's Dancesport Studio. The opening night pool party on Thursday April 6th, will be playing a mixed music format of hustle and Latin music from 7 pm - 11pm. The pool party will be casual carribean attire and have bar-b-que food available if you are hungry. After 11pm a shuttle service will take you to Café Nostalga and Jimmy'z for disco and latin dancing until 4 am. The music format on Friday night will have a Disco ballroom with Hustle music, and a Latin dance ballroom for a mix of salsa, merenge and cumbia's. Along with our DJ's, we will be having a twelve piece salsa band Grupo Exitos, Miami's hottest house Latin band playing in the Latin ballroom for Friday night's Copacabana party. Saturday night there will be a dance band playing a mixed music format for dinner dancing, and then after the Dance Dimension's Show both DJ's, Henry Knowles and Bobby Morales, will be playing a mixed music format with regular rotation of Hustle and Latin music, just like they play in our nightclubs in South Florida.
As part of our Friday Night "Copacabana" party we will have a fashion show, dance showcases with incredible teams, an awards ceremony honoring Cuban Pete Aguilar for his lifetime achievements in the world of Latin dance. Cuban Pete will then present the first'"Cuban Pete" award on behalf of the competition, to be given annually to recognize the salsa dancer of the year , to Jerry and Marlene Jaramboure who are the pioneers of salsa casino in South Florida from Club Mystique over a decade ago. And at midnight we will have the hustle and salsa jack and jill contests. ( for those unfamiliar with these contests it is where the man pulls a number out of a hat for whom his partner will be and then the couples dance to a song chosen by the DJ….it tests the true ability to lead and follow without routines, or costumes, and choreography, just talent! Winners will get a nice trophy!)
One of the bonuses we will be offering weekend
package attendees of the convention with special VIP passes to local clubs for
late night after hours dancing. So we are lining up some of Miami Beach's
hottest nightclubs for parties on Thursday, Friday, Sunday, and Monday nights.
We now have confirmed late night VIP passes for Café Nostalgia ( a Old Havana
Style nightclub), and Jimmy'z (NY Style Disco) which is part of The Forge
Restaurant (four star restaurant) on 41st Street in Miami Beach, Friday late
night VIP passes will be available for the Starfish Club on Miami Beach, which
is the hottest salsa club on the Beach and is open until 4 am. The Sunday night
closing party will be at Club Level in South Beach, the largest disco in South
Beach, and we will control the music, so it means great disco and salsa music
all night. Monday night our post-party dance VIP tickets will be for Mango's
Lounge in South Beach. Everyone gets on the bar and dances in a tropical setting
in the heart of South Beach. Attendees will have in their registration packet,
the various clubs VIP tickets and they must keep their wristband on to show the
clubs for free admission. Registration will start Thursday so that you can have
your passes and wristbands.
The deadline for our advertisers and their artwork is March 10. If you wan tot take out a business card ad, please call Randy today at 800-749-6029. We are looking for advertisers, sponsors and vendors for our event; so if you are interested please contact Randy Atlas at his e-mail site ratlas@ix.netcom.com The program will have business card ads for the local dance schools and larger ads for those persons and businesses that desire them. Last year's program, designed by Linda Witham, was spectacular and generated much business.
For the local dancers we have made arrangements for discounted daily parking at the Deauville for only $6 per day, and $10 if you stay overnight. That is half of what they normally charge, and a third of what you would pay on South Beach to park your car on Collins or Washington Avenues.
Please note that there will be no refunds offered, but you can assign tickets to another person if you are unable to attend and recover your costs from that person. The deadline for any ticket transfers is April 1, as is the deadline for competitors entry forms.
Want to learn how to dance hustle? Billy and Katie have top-rated videos for persons wanting to learn the basics through advanced techniques. Go to http://www.hustleandsalsa.com/videos.html for videos of hustle and last year's competitions and incredible dinner show.
On a local scene, there will be a Hustle dance
party at Dancesation, 56 N. Federal Hwy., in Dania on Saturday March 10. There
will be a dance lesson with Billy Fajardo from 8-9 pm and then open dancing
until 1am. Also, IHSC founders Katie Marlow and Billy Fajardo are teaching
hustle every Wednesday night in Ft. Lauderdale from 8-9 PM at Club Palladium,
Sample Road and Hwy. 441 and have a hustle class every Monday night at
Dancesation 56 N. Fed. Hwy. in Dania, at 8pm. Randy Atlas is teaching a
ballroom, swing and hustle class at the University of Miami Wellness Center,
1241 Dickenson Drive, every Wednesday night Starting January 24, 2001 from 7:30
-10 pm. For more information on these events please call 305-284-5433. Attached
is the latest registration flyer. Keep on dancing everywhere. Our next blast
will focus on the incredible dinner dance show.