SalsaSelfie.com 🇨🇺

Coming from Dile Que No into Open Position, I mostly skip Guapea: I don’t want to stop-up, I don’t want to do the “back-and-forward” Guapea Horror Show, or to suddenly go sideways using Cruzado Guapea.

I do use the versatile “forward-forward” Guapea (Cruzado), the traditional Guapea GOAT, from time to time and in certain situations as an ordinary figure in its own right. But my general approach is to reduce the use of standard Guapeas to zero. I want “Guapea” free dancing.

But I sometimes find it a little “clumsy” or “too fast” to start the next sequence of figures right away directly from Dile Que No. In order to get a more smooth transition, I have developed two new Guapea figures. I like these Guapea figures because they are made with the sole purpose of creating a better forward walking flow.

I call them Guapea Mágico and Paseo Guapea.  In this tutorial I present Paseo Guapea. Just like for Guapea Mágico, this Guapea is done walking forward. No sideways, no forward-and-back, no open break. I want Guapea figures that integrates naturally in my Casino based on natural walking.

Paseo Guapea

Paseo Guapea is a basic figure of one count of eight. Both Lead and Follow step like a “Paseo Walk” on “1-2-3”, a Guapea High Five on “5”, and on “5-6-7” the Lead brings the Follow into the start Position of Open Position. Some Leads do Guapea with hand-grabbing. I never grab hands. I believe that a gentle High Five is such a nice way to celebrate success and to confirm mutual respect on the dance floor.

For the Paseo Walk, the Lead steps forward on “1”, steps forward on “2” and turns around a half turn, and steps back on “3” in order to create a passage way for the Follow very similar to a Cross Body Lead. On “5” the Lead step back and then foreward on “6-7”. In Paseo Guapea only the first half of the Paseo Walk is used.

For the Paseo Walk, the Follow steps forward on “1-2-3”, on “3” she angels her right foot 90 degrees to the right. On “5-6-7” the Follow steps forward and walks in front of the Lead, very similar to a Cross Body Lead, and on “7” the Follow angeles her left foot a little to the left. On “1”, comming from inside, it is easy to do the rest of the 90 degree directional change in order to create a box-shaped walk pattern, sometimes with rounded corners.

For the Paseo Guapea the Follow only uses the first half of the Paseo Walk. On “5-6-7” she is led into the Start Position of Open Position.

One or more times

Paseo Guapea works well done just once as a basic figure, but it works egually several times in a row. It is a natural walk that integrates well into Casino based on natural walking. Unlike traditional Guapea figures where we suddenly have stop-ups, forward-and-back, Open Break, Back-rocking or sideways patterns.

New figure

I believe that as long as the High Five has been used in Guapea, we have had Leads using it occasionally also in Paseo Walks. My contribution is to add the Guapea part in a consistent manner, to refine it into a Basic Guapea Figure of one count of eight, easy to replicate, and to give it a name.

I am dying to see if other leaders start using it as their own or if they by chance have come up with a similar basic figure long time ago.