Drenched in the pulsating rhythms of bachata beats and adorned with the warmth of Caribbean culture, the Bachata Night Party, hosted by Caribbean Club, illuminated the Underwood Room last Friday.
As the melodies swirled and hips swayed, attendees reveled in a night of connection and celebration, embracing the spirit of Dominican Independence Day. Dominique Williams ’24, one of the event’s organizers, elaborated on the motivation of the event.
“Bachata is common in the U.S., along with salsa and other types of dance, but people don’t really know that it’s Dominican. So, [Leanny Garcia’ 24] wanted to spread that awareness and have people be introduced to Dominican culture. Who doesn’t like to dance?” said Williams.
Beyond the surface allure of music and dance, the Bachata Night Party introduced a refreshing concept to campus life. It provided a structured yet liberating space for individuals to express themselves. Instead of more individualized dances often found at other dancing events, attendee Christina Donovan ’24 described how attendees were seen hand in hand, swaying to the rhythmic beats of bachata and enjoying the shared music.
“Bachata night is special because they bring in an instructor. So, even if you forgot how to dance, they would teach you again, so it’s really nice… I feel like when you go to Blue and Silver or something, everyone’s moshing, and sometimes, you feel awkward because you don’t know what to do. But with bachata, there [are] steps. You’re moving your hips, and it’s good,” said Donovan.
According to another attendee, Quin Langham ’26, the essence of bachata lies not in rigid adherence to choreography, but in the organic flow of movement. It is crucial for dancers to feel the rhythm and get “into the groove.” Langham described the mix of dancing with other fun activities during the night.
“With bachata and bachata music, you really feel the music. To dance, it’s not about thinking about the steps or anything. It’s about just feeling it and really getting into the music and everything, which I really like. So, it’s not like I dance that I have to remember steps for. It’s just like once you learn the basic things, you know how to dance and you can just do it on your own with the partner… When I was with my friends at Bachata night, we were all doing ‘telenovela -esque’ breakups… We were all dancing with each other, but we had specific partners. And then if we would leave and our partner would be with someone else, we would fake a breakup and make it a whole drama thing… That was very fun,” said Langham.
Langham continued by emphasizing the Bachata Night as a transformative experience where vulnerability can act as a catalyst for community bonding. They highlighted the event as an opportunity for everyone, regardless of their experience dancing, to join and find others.
“Learning how to dance, especially for someone who doesn’t know how to dance, [is] a very embarrassing kind of thing. Learning to be embarrassed together and still do it anyway, that’s like a sense of community. I didn’t know everyone there, but we were all doing a dance we didn’t know how to do together, and that was bonding,” said Langham.
