The Fleishman Career Center would like to highlight Candela Latin Dance Clubs first ever banquet “Dia de Los Ninos” held this past fall semester and discuss the importance of Latin dance on campus.
What inspired Candela Latin Dance Club to host its first-ever banquet this year, including deciding to focus on your current theme?
What inspired Candela to host our first-ever banquet this year was to get our general audience to be able to take a step away from academic stress and come have a fun night and enjoy dance and interactive activities! Often people will attend our events with the mindset of taking a break and learning something new and fun that’s beginner friendly! Our theme was “Dia de Los Ninos” which is translated to the day of the child, which symbolises youth and growing up. We wanted to use this theme because as college students, Candela felt that as students we need a break to remember that we can have fun and enjoy ourselves, as we are still growing and maturing as humans!
What goals did you hope the banquet would accomplish for your members and for the broader Binghamton community?
The goals we hoped to accomplish for our members is having a milestone of recognizing how big Candela has grown as an organization these past 3 years! Throwing a banquet was to give back to our community! To those who turn out to our weekly events even when ITS COLDD. Our banquet being free made it super accessible for everyone to come! Which I believe helps the broader community by proving safe and free spaces to have fun without having to spend anything. In the future we hope to make the event even bigger and more fun so the broader Binghamton Community can come and enjoy Latin culture!
What were some of the highlights of the banquet for you?
Highlights of the banquet was definitely everyone singing to our host Happy Birthday since she took the time to host during her special day! <3 On top of that, being able to teach over 150+ people a bachata choreography in the Old Union Hall was hectic but doable. Our host was amazing- teaching and solidifying the dance. Lastly, our inflatable unicorn definitely helped contribute to the dance floor and getting people to get up have a blast towards the end!
Why is it important to showcase Latin dance at Binghamton University and how does your club create an inclusive environment for students from different cultural backgrounds?
We know it’s super vital to showcase Latin dance at Binghamton University because it serves as a reminder that Latinos are at Bing. We are proud of our culture and the beauty it holds, and we do that expression in the form of dancing and teaching to everyone who’s willing to learn and have fun, regardless of their background! Whenever we table, we are proud to showcase what we do on campus and encourage anyone to come, and they’d be more than welcomed in our spaces. We always make sure that everyone has a partner for our dances, ensuring no one feels left out or as if they didn’t belong within our organization.
Why is dance such a central part of Hispanic and Latin American culture?
Dance is so important in Hispanic and Latin American culture, and the reason isn’t because we are the best at dancing or because we teach dance. It’s because in Latin culture, when growing up around Hispanic and Latin cultures we are engaged and raised to learn dance and sometimes not everyone picks it up. However, that’s what we want to encourage, if Hispanic or Latin students feel that they didn’t get the chance to learn while growing up, they are more than welcomed in our spaces to claim that heritage! Latin dance isn’t always up for performance, it’s a pleasure and a great way to socialize within Latin culture, which is what makes dance a key part of our culture. It functions as an opportunity to have social bonding, a celebration of community, family gatherings and many festivities!
How does Candela honor the cultural roots of the styles it performs (salsa, bachata, merengue, etc.) while still making them accessible to a college audience?
Thanks to our Educational Chair, we quickly for the first few minutes of our events introduce the dance we plan to teach and its roots that it has in respect to what countries it’s tied to. We make our choreographies as easy yet cultural as we can to teach those who are beginners at our events! We even got the chance to collaborate with the Disabled Student Union in the future to make our dances and events even more accessible to the overall student body at Binghamton University!
Candela LDC 25′-26′ Executive Board
Participants learning and dancing during a program!
Special Performance by Caribbean Dance team Tropical Ecstacy at The Banquet
La hora Loca (The Crazy hour) occurred at Candela Banquet
– A Latinx tradition celebration usually at weeding or big birthday parties
where a “party within the party” occurs late in the evening. It involves loud music, strobe lights, confetti, and entertainers, like dancers, or LED robots who surprise guests with props such as masks, hats, and glow sticks to revitalize the dance floor.
