Salsa Hell

Salsa Hell is the definition given to the timespan when a dancer goes from beginner to intermediate in the salsa dancing community. During this period, a dancer can get very frustrated with the dance. Additionally, problems obtaining dance partners (and therefore practise) arise, due to the time it takes for the dancer to build up his/her confidence in the dance.

The time it takes for a lead (usually the men) to pass the salsa hell stage is longer than the follower (usually the woman), because he is required to take rather more responsibility during the dance (eg. keeping track of the beat, knowing the pattern, performing footwork..etc) compared to the follower. Replying to (following) the lead's actions obviously requires rather less responsibility.