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A hands-free Coca-Cola, or a free Coca-Cola meaning that the Lead let go of the Follow’s hands and set her free to turn exactly as she wants, is surprisingly rare in Cuban Salsa. Hands-free Coca-Cola Double Left Turns are so rare that they are almost a sensation!

This might have something to do with the way most Cuban Leads dance Casino as a Macho Tour de Force dance where the Follows are reduced to just being a dance assistant, a dance prop, an excuse for the Lead to be a show-off on the dance floor. Most Cuban Leads rarely set the stage for the Follows to shine. Cuban Leads too often want the spotlight and the applause for themselves.

I believe in Follow-centric dancing. The role of the Lead is to show how well he can make the Follow dance with him. Free traveling turns, Vacilala and Coca-Cola, are one of the highlights of a Follow-Centric dance style. They give the Follow an opportunity to go rouge and strike out on her own.

Traveling Double Turns

Both for Hands-free Vacilala and Coca-Cola, I recommend always to use the “Los Dos” (Both) versions, that is, the Lead should also turn. If the Follow turns alone, she expect to be picked up again as fast as possible. If the Lead also turns, a magic moment is created for both the Lead and the Follow to shine and be playful together.

A Follow should always, if at all possible, aim at using the hand-free opportunity to do a traveling Vacilala or a Coca-Cola Double Turn. Don’t misuse the situation to level down and just spin around on the spot the easy way or walk around in a snail-house spiral. It is simply impossible to come up with anything better than a perfect traveling double turn.

If the double turn is successful, both the Lead and the Follow can celebrate with free-styling improvisations, doing additional turns including spin turns, and play around to the music for a while.