Every single thing you do is amazing... down to the very movements of your fingertips!...I have never seen anyone dance like you.

-- Greg F., Singapore

Stimulate Change -  Feel Like a New Person  -  Experience Life

How it All Started

From Ana Masacote -- For years people have mentioned to us they wished they lived in Boston to train with us at our school and more.  One day in 2008 I thought, why not offer an actual opportunity for people to visit and train for an intense period of time while still being affordable and fun?

I decided then I wanted to have a full training bootcamp -- not the one-day cliches, but the real thing -- A Full One Week Retreat. If I was going to host a styling camp, I was going to provide myself with enough time to stimulate a real change in each individual because CHANGE is what this retreat is all about.

After lots of hard work and planning, I hosted a very successful first year in 2009 and received such great feedback and had such a WONDERFUL time that I decided to do it again. There were many things I learned from the first year, one of them being that it is really great to have guys to practice with!  Plus, I realized there were many guys who also wanted to attend the retreat, although it was only open to women.  So, for 2010, I decided to open it up to 50 men as well so that they would be able to train directly with Joel Masacote.  And thus, the Annual Masacote Salsa & Styling Retreat for Men and Women was born.

Who This Retreat Is For

The Masacote Salsa Retreat will be an INTENSIVE week of training like none other you've experienced before.  This FULL WEEK RETREAT is for people looking for a detailed course of training and are interested in working on the finer points of dance so often overlooked in classes.  It is about learning the how, not the what, to make you feel like a new dancer on the floor.  And more than anything, it is for people looking for a break from life and personal reflection.

During the Masacote Salsa Retreat, participants will be able to work with Ana, Joel, and assistants.  This is a full week of training that focuses not only on styling, but on all the technique needed to make that styling possible: warm up, strengthening and conditioning, spinning, balance, core control, musicality, movement drills, isolations, arm and body positioning, partnering connection, and more.

Each day is a buildup on the previous day. The retreat is taught by Ana and Joel Masacote and assistants.  During the morning sections, men and women will train together.  During the afternoon sections, men and women will be split up in different rooms to work directly with Joel and Ana respectively.

Outside of training, there will be plenty to do.  Scheduled group activities will include rock climbing, archery, visits to the beach, and more.  Other non-scheduled activities will also be available, such as basketball, frisbee, or walking around the camp.  Participants can also decide to spend some quiet time on their own and lounge around the camp or log swings, read a book by the fireplace, or watch a sunrise or sunset at the nearby beach.

A Personal Note from Ana Masacote

From Ana Masacote -- They say we are what we do, but I believe more so that we do what we are. For me, life is dance, and dance is life, and I cannot see myself doing anything else but dance.  I was always the shy, quiet girl walking down the hallways and stairways of school with her glasses sliding down her nose and her head in a book. And then I grew into Salsa.

Salsa opened up a side of me I never let out. It brought about a confidence I never knew existed, and it allowed me to release the introvertive side of myself. Through it, I learned to let go of my inhibitions.

You see, what makes people fun to watch is not how many turn patterns they have, but how creative they are with what they have learned.  Everyone interprets the music differently, and from this interpretation originates one's personal style, or the "flava" they bring to the dance.  The dance floor is the place where one can become a totally different person; however, the person you become is invariably the window into who you really are.  Salsa made me understand how to just be me.

It is this experience of release that Joel and I hope to create from our salsa retreat.  We are firm believers in breathing in the spontaneity of life, but sometimes, we need some reflection and an impetus to help us along the way.

Come join us this August for an experience like none other. :)

Don't wait! This is a ONCE IN A LIFETIME Experience!
Space is Limited to ONLY 25 Women & 25 Men!