They
move through the crowd like any other paying customer
at Chicago's World Salsa Congress, blending in
without fancy tour jackets or big logos on T-shirts.
But behind their smiles of satisfaction, the wheels
are spinning: Eli Irizarry and Luis Delgado are
studying everything that goes on throughout the
event.
After
all, the co-founders of the World Salsa Congress
are mindful of the 20 events they've licensed
for production around the world, and they're fully
engaged in Chicago's second edition of the congress.
As
was the case in 2002, Irizarry's All-Star Entertainment
worked with Chicago-based Cultural Expressions
Productions, Ltd., to stage the congress over
the St. Valentine's Day weekend this year, at
the Hyatt Regency Hotel by the city's lakefront.
Irizarry and Delgado are hands-on principal partners,
globetrotting from city to city and showcasing
salsa dance and music everywhere they go.
Irizarry
says the congress format hasn't changed since
the concept took hold in Puerto Rico in 1997.
"It's about the workshops, the coaching sessions,
the vendors, the showcase dancing and the show
with the major star every night," Irizarry said.
On opening night, the major star was Puerto Rican
sonero Ismael Miranda, who kept the crowd of 500
or so dancers jumping all night long.
"I
always feel honored to bring my music to this
audience," Miranda told SalsaChicago.com. "It's
great to see so many talented young people dancing
with such dedication. It's excellent."
Tito
Nieves, Jose Alberto "el Canario" and Michael
Stuart made appearances on stage each of the other
three nights.
Irizarry,
a former sportswriter for a Puerto Rican daily
newspaper, came up with the idea of a dancers'
convention during a quiet Thanksgiving weekend
six years ago. "I went online and put out a search
for 'salsa.' I was amazed at the big number of
sites and references to music from around the
world.
"I
decided dance and music fans must get together,
and it had to happen in Puerto Rico. Puerto Ricans
had to see how far and wide this music has traveled,"
Irizarry said.
Besides
the 20 events produced by All-Star Entertainment,
Irizarry believes another 30 are staged under
the generic "salsa congress" banner by other promoters
worldwide.
Delgado
arrived in Chicago from Murcia, Spain, where he
said more than 1,200 people attended the congress
there. He'll be back in Europe in May to oversee
the congress in Sicily, Italy and Stuttgart, Germany.
All-Star
Entertainment is also excited about the Salsa
Open, an offshoot of the congress based on competitive
dancing and held together with the congress in
some locations. The first open was held in Puerto
Rico in August as part of the 10-day congress.
"We
heard from a lot of dancers who were interested
in competing, so we developed the open as a response
to that interest," Delgado said.
Irizarry
and Delgado must've been impressed by the work
done by Cultural Expressions and the enthusiastic
response from the local dance community. "They
have placed this event at an exceptional level
of excellence," Delgado said. Yet, putting together
a congress like the one in Chicago isn't easy
- very few of them make a notable amount of money.
"You
can count the moneymakers on one hand, and you
may have fingers left over," Irizarry noted. He
mentioned that expenses for any given event run
up to $600,000, but he didn't quote a specific
figure, saying it varies according to any given
city.
But
its reason for being remains the same, Irizarry
said: "It starts with putting the dancers first,
and having experienced dancers teach the younger
ones.
