Laissez les bons temps rouler. Today’s post covers our visit to Cubason Congress: Dile Que Nola Edition in New Orleans, Louisiana. Keep on reading to hear about the 4 day festival in the Big Easy.
What was Included?
Both of us had performer’s passes ($200) which was a discounted full pass ($250) for performers.
- 3 days of workshops (13 hours, 2 options per hour)
- 1 Danceable lecture (Conga)
- 1 Flashmob Practice (Free to all)
- 1 Flashmob (Free to all)
- 2 Panels (Open to public)
- 3 nightly socials
- Friday included Performances and a Casino competition
- Saturday included Performances and band Victor Campbell & La Timba Swamp
- 1 Late afternoon timba at the park (Free to all)
You could also purchase a Trolley ticket which went around new orleans with fellow festival goers while jamming to music for $40.
What classes did I take?
Alexa
- Changing Timing w/ Ryan
- Rueda de Casino Small Structures w/ Sassan
- Lady’s Styling w/ Alex
- Lady’s Styling w/ Alex
- Conga pa’ cerrar w/ Clara
Andrea
- Rueda de Casino Small Structures w/ Sassan
- Rueda de Casino Active Follower w/ Sassan
- Flashmob Practice
- Lady’s Styling w/ Alex
- Lady’s Styling w/ Alex
My favorite part?
Alexa
Clarita’s Conga Class. For me, this is what every danceable lecture should be. I could feel the personal and cultural connection of the Conga to the instructor, students, and Santiagueros. It was beyond fun while being informative.
Andrea
Sunday Timba at the Park. The vibes were off the chart. The last party is almost always a favorite of mine. I danced a lot of this one, and it was just pure fun. It was a party that represented New Orleans.
An Area of Improvement
Alexa
Class scheduling. Given the number of attendees, I think 3+ simultaneous classes would have worked better to make classes a little smaller. Especially, as this festival keeps growing.
Andrea
Programming. Due to the short time in-between events on the schedule, I felt it cut short time for the bailador to dance, but also for different communities to interact and exchange ideas. In the future, adding more time in-between events could help Cubason keep the many things they offered.
Overall Takeaways
Thanks to the Cubason team (Ramses, Nicole, Lori, Adrian, Daybert) and their ideas which made this congress come to be. Huge shout out to all the support volunteers from Dile Que Nola who made everything easy from registration to close. Thank you also for inviting the Ville Casineras to perform. Congratulations to all the performers who absolutely demolished the dance floor. Our DJs and band for keeping the party alive. Thanks to the instructors for sharing their knowledge. We want to give an enormous thanks to Nicole and Lori who facilitated the weekend, who poured their love and time into the event, and shared all their city has to offer. Without you, this year’s Cubason wouldn’t have been possible.
Workshops were spread across 3 days. The most common class topics for Casino partner work and Rueda de Casino. From there there were classes that explored lady styling, musicality, Son, Danzon, Rumba, Bolero, and Conga. It will be cool to see what more they offer or how they continue to build up the genres they’ve already taught. The workshops were a nice way to get explore and introduce people to new genres of Cuban dance. Gallier hall was a stunning space to have held the workshops. Clara Nieto’s Conga class was by far the perfect way to close out the workshops.
We were both satisfied with the length of the parties and how late the Friday and Saturday parties went. We would like to have had more time to dance to timba from the DJs on Friday and Saturday. There was a lot of time taken up by performances, the competition, the band. Also, in the future giving people a little more time after the panels before the socials start we find is important to make sure people eat and rest. This detail was noted and appreciate with the Friday party’s on-site dining. The band also was really fun, and both of us love a chance to enjoy live music
By far Sunday was our favorite day. The flashmob was a really cool homage and special touch to the event. I loved that it was still open to people who were not full pass holder’s, making it an inclusive event. And the Sunday party was so casual and fun with lots of great dancing and music. The energy was off the chart. Plus free water, sports drinks, and popsicles to get through the heat meant a lot.
Cubason’s first time in the US was one of the biggest Casino/Cuban dance events that’s taken place here in 2024. Meeting up with the USA Cuban dance community is what makes these events so special to us. We commend this event for bringing in instructors many USA Casineros wouldn’t often have access to which helped set this event apart.
It looks like 2025 is happening in Mallorca, or so the rumors say. So be sure to their check out their facebook page for updates. So were you at Cubason, what was your favorite part? Comment below. Are you looking to keep scratching that travel itch…check out our travel page for events all the way into 2025!
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