| In open position there is some distance between the two in the couple. They still hold one hand together (leaders left hand and followers right hand). Guapea is the name of the basic step in open position. Most of the rueda figures start from this position, but a few of the figures start when the partners are side by side. This typically happens for example when you change partner, like in the figure dame una.
. Beginner level |
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| Side by side | Guapea | |
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dame
= give me
This is the most common figure in rueda – a simple partner change.
There are several commands that means the same as “dame una”. Some of the most common are:
- dame = give me
- dame una = give me one
- dame otra = give me another
- otra = another
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dame dos
= give me two
This figure is like dame una, but the guys go to the second lady to his right, not the first. Because it is a longer distance, the guys need to start moving as soon as the previous lady passed (that is on beat nr 6).
A classic sequence of commands is: “dame una > dame dos > dos con dos”.
It is not very common to call dame dos from the basic step in open position (“guapea”), it feels like you have to run to the partner.
It is not unusual to also call “dame tres” (give me three, i.e. partner number three). If the dancers go all in on getting there in time, don’t be surprised if the caller calls mentira! just for fun.
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dame una arriba
= give me one upward
This figure is basically like dame una, but lead is changing partner to their left. In this case the dile que no starts as the guys are in front of the ladies, and is therefore done with some more turning.
These are all common commands for this figure:
– dame una arriba [give me one upward]
– una arriba [one upward]
– la de arriba [the one upward]
A classic sequence of commands is: dame una > dame dos > una arriba.
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paseala
= take her for a walk
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sacala
= pick her up
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enchufla
= connect her
enchufla is probably the most common figure in rueda de casino, in addition to dame una.
enchufla is also used frequently as a start for other figures, like enchufla con mambo.
In the Rueda Standard the enchufla command includes a partner change. This is the most common practice in our experience, but there are exceptions.
It is possible to call enchufla without partner change by the command enchufla y dile que no.
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enchufla doble
= double “enchufla”
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enchufla y quedate
= connect her and stay
In this figure the men meet in the middle in certain settings, as explained in the video.
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enchufla con mambo
= “enchufla” with mambo
Con mambo adds mambo steps to a figure, for both men and women. In enchufla con mambo, the mambo steps are done when changing partner, so the mambo steps also include hand movements.
Normally the mambo part keeps on for 8 beats, but it is possible to extend it by calling siguelo or similar.
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dame directo
= give me directly
This is a simple partner change without turning (and without dile que no). The command may vary a bit:
- dame directo
- directo
- damela directo
There are also a few different ways to lead this figure:
- with guys left hand in womans right (shown in the video)
- with both hands
- with right hand in right hand (the guy switches on 7)
A tip for the leader is to lead without any turning of the follower and step (left) out of the way for your right arm to not hit the follower when passing.
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pelota una, dos, tres
= ball one, two, three (refering to baseball)
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festival de pelota
= festival of “pelota”
This figure is a common combination of three figures, that may also be called separately: pelota una, pelota dos and pelota tres.
In general, adding festival de to a call, usually indicates making three repetitions of a certain figure with one clap after the first time, two claps after the second time, and three claps after the third time.
However, there are exceptions like festival de fly, a figure of three claps following each other (on 1, 2 and 3), with no partner change in between.
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vacilala
= look at her
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sombrero
= hat
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sombrero con mambo
= “sombrero” with mambo
In sombrero con mambo the arms are not free to do the hand movements, so in this specific figure the mambo part mainly include footwork.
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la prima
= the cousin
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prima con la hermana
= cousin with the sister
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la familia
= the family
In Cuba it is most common to call this figure ‘famila’ (or variations like ‘la familia’, ‘prima con la familia’, ‘prima con toda la familia’, ..).
Outside of Cuba you may also hear “hasta la tia” (all the way out to the aunt), or “la abuela” (the grandmother).
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patin
= skating
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