Treinta Y Tres Delaware Rueda fosters cross-cultural connection in kaleidoscopic Cuban dance

When some people say they “can’t dance,” they refer to their lack of grace or embarrassing moves. When I say that I can’t dance, I am saying that I do not dance.

I generally refuse to out of an inflated sense of self-consciousness that’s prevented me from losing myself to the music at live concerts and even in the privacy of my own home. 

Despite knowing this about myself, I showed up to Kicks Academy of Dance in Glen Mills, Pa., on a recent Sunday morning to participate in a Cuban dance class with Treinta Y Tres Delaware Rueda, an organization based in Claymont. 

I came in with an open mind and my dancing shoes on (though mine paled in comparison to the shiny, red ballroom shoes of a classmate). 

When Treinta Y Tres founder and instructor Mike Payne asked me whether I had ever taken a dance class, I explained that I didn’t have much dancing experience — at all.

“Throw you in the trenches. Grab the grenades,” he said with a laugh. 

Then, boot camp began. 

Casino is a partnered dance that developed in ballrooms in Havana in the 1950s. 

In Rueda de Casino — Treinta Y Tres’ speciality — couples dance in a circle, hence the “rueda” in the name. A caller shouts out moves in Spanish that dancers must execute while constantly changing partners. 

Luckily for me, we started with a much more linear son cubano dance — the style that served as the foundation for casino. 

Mike divided the class into “leaders” and “followers.” I was, to my dismay, a leader.

In pairs, we began with back-and-forth footwork as Mike counted out the beat. My eyes were glued to my feet as I mimicked Mike’s movements. But after a few repetitions, I’d memorized where to step.

Things became more complex as Mike added moves like the entrada, which requires the leader to create a gate with their arm for their follower to pass through in a twirl. 

We switched partners every few minutes. Some of my more experienced partners guided me as they repositioned my arms and told me to lead with my chest rather than staring at my feet. 

Though I apologized to all my partners, each met me with encouragement and reminders to enjoy myself — which, to my surprise, I did. Though I didn’t nail every step of the dance by the end of the hour, I’d made an exciting amount of progress. 

‘Heartbeat of the community’

Afterward was the Rueda de Casino class, during which couples gathered in a ring and executed moves at Mike’s command. 

“I love the beauty of it. If you ever see it from an aerial perspective, the shapes that are formed almost look like a kaleidoscope, like flowers opening and closing,” longtime Treinta Y Tres participant Drew Chambers said. “It’s supposed to resemble the heartbeat of the community.”

It’s clear from watching that Rueda de Casino can be much more chaotic than son cubano.

“Rueda is a call-and-respond dance, meaning that on a certain count of a song, you call the next move,” explained Susan Payne, Treinta Y Tres co-director and Mike’s wife. “You can make it really boring … or you can make it very dynamic from these hundreds of different calls you’re mixing in this soup of fun and changes of directions and trying to trick people.”

In fact, making mistakes and scrambling to fix them is often the most fun part of a class, Mike said. Not all Rueda de Casino instructors have that mindset.

“I came from another Rueda group about a year ago,” participant Ayesha Stable said. “They were often very punitive when I got it wrong. I didn’t feel that way when I got here.”

Treinta Y Tres is so welcoming of beginners that Ayesha felt comfortable inviting her head-over-heels fiance, Arturo Stable, a few months ago. 

Arturo is originally from Cuba and has always been a wallflower. 

“Dancing is such a big part of Cuban culture. When I hear the music, my heart starts pumping. I want to do it, but I just never had the opportunity to learn and to practice, especially with someone as awesome as my fiancée,” Arturo said.

Arturo instantly connected with the Spanish-language music and, after a few months, can dance to the flow of the music rather than rigidly repeating patterns “like a robot.”

“It feels like I can connect with my culture in ways that I never could before,” he said. 

Flash mobs and potlucks

Creating cross-cultural connection is one reason Mike and Susan founded Treinta Y Tres Delaware Rueda in 2019. 

It all began when Mike and Susan saw a group dancing Rueda de Casino at a Philadelphia club called The Eighth Floor. They were entranced.

They approached one of the dancers, Darlin Garcia, who is the founder of Art in Motion Latin Dancers. Garcia explained that he didn’t teach Rueda de Casino but could start a class if the Paynes gathered a group. So, the Paynes called up some friends and learned from Garcia for the next six months.

The group dwindled as the members became busy with kids and careers. But several years later, in 2019, the Paynes began hosting Rueda de Casino dances with friends in basements, living rooms and backyards. 

That led to more adventures, including organizing a Rueda de Casino flash mob in Concord Mall and going on a week-long trip to Cuba in January 2020 to learn from dance instructors. 

Just as the group gained momentum, the COVID pandemic hit. The one upside was that it gave Mike the opportunity to learn from Cuban dance instructors from across the world who had moved their lessons online. 

“For two years straight, it was just studying, studying and studying and learning about Cuban culture, the whole development of the dance and how to dance it properly,” Mike said.

Contagious synchronicity

After the pandemic, Treinta Y Tres hit the ground running. 

The Paynes’ get-togethers evolved into a free “Dance & Dine” event held a few times a year, which includes a Rueda de Casino beginners’ class, a dance and a potluck.

“People from all different ethnic groups come here. So, when we have our “Dance & Dines,” people bring food from all over the world,” Susan said. “You’re getting influences from everywhere. People are really proud of their culture, so they want to share it with you.”

The event is an excellent way to combat xenophobia and social isolation, she added.

“(Dancing) really makes you open to having a conversation with someone or getting to know people on a deeper level, taking away those barriers that normally would exist when you’re out walking around or at the store,” she said.

Mike and Susan also started hosting drop-in Sunday classes for all levels, which start at a mere $5 per person.

“We’ve always wanted to make sure it was accessible to people, so that (money) wasn’t a barrier for anybody who wanted to come in,” Susan said. 

Treinta Y Tres also hosts international trips to learn from instructors from across the world. (The group currently doesn’t have plans to return to Cuba, given the ongoing humanitarian crisis.) The group also features international instructors during its annual RuedX event in January.

Treinta Y Tres’ growth from a gathering of friends to an organization with an international reach wouldn’t have been possible without grant funding. Most recently, the organization received a $50,000 “Walking Together” grant from the U.S. Regional Arts Organizations in June. 

Treinta Y Tres has used the funds on its regular operations and events but also wants to use the funding to hire instructors and train additional callers (those who call out commands during Rueda de Casino).

“We can’t be everywhere. We want people to be doing (Rueda de Casino) when we’re not around,” Susan said. “Say, some people live in Middletown or down further, and they drive up here for classes, or they get trained. … They’re going to spread it in their area. Eventually, it’ll spread throughout the whole state.” 

The Paynes believe growing Rueda de Casino in Delaware is important not only because it expands cultural offerings for the Cuban community, but also because the dance form brings people together, regardless of culture. 

“Everyone is dancing. We’re in sync. We’re in unison. And there’s something about the synchronicity that’s contagious,” Mike said. “It really does fill you and make you want to do more and connect with people.”