By TYLER KENNEDY, Contributing Writer

Salsa filled the Granite State Room on March 12 as the Mosaico hosted their very own event open to the general public, “Dancing with Mosaico.”

Mosaico is the Latino/Latina organization at UNH that performs events and functions for the public that emphasize Hispanic culture and heritage.

“The best way to end this half of the semester is by dancing,” said Mosaico president Ashley Gonzalez.

The event, which ran from 7-9 p.m. was free to all undergraduate students and cost only $3 for those otherwise. They offered the opportunity to learn a number of Latin dance styles to all interested individuals, be them members of the club or just students looking for a fun time. No prior dance experience was needed as the leaders of Mosaico taught each dance on a step-by-step basis, allowing for an easy lesson for all who participated. Such dances featured at the event were the Salsa, Merengue, Bachata, Nortena, and the Forro.

The members of Mosaico also provided a fitting soundtrack to go along with the dancing. Such artists they included on their playlist were popular singers Romeo Santos and Marc Anthony.  The latter, according to iTunes, is classified as the biggest-selling salsa artist of all time.

   Coincidently, that wasn’t the only manner by which salsa was present in the room. As promised in their advertisement for the event, light refreshment was provided in the form of salsa (the food) and chips. Six different chip stations surrounded the middle of the room, where all the dancing occurred. The salsa, which was prepared by a member of Mosaico, consisted of ingredients that were all locally bought. Unfortunately, the salsa supply didn’t hold up very long, leaving the dishes empty but the crowd satisfied.

Mosaico has an emphasis on Hispanic culture and heritage to it, but the roughly 25 members of the organization range from all different ethnicities and backgrounds. In fact, the word “mosaic” is Spanish and Portuguese for mosaic: something made up of different things that together form a pattern.

Gonzalez, a member since her freshman year, has a firm understanding of what Mosaico symbolizes:  “My interpretation is that we consider our org to be like a mosaic pot instead of a melting pot, meaning that when we start to talk about Latin America, we are considerate of the fact that although there may be similarities within countries, there are also a lot of differences. Being a mosaic pot means that we keep everyone’s culture as it is, instead of melting it down to be something completely different.”

Mosaico meets weekly in MUB 145 at 7 p.m. on Thursday nights.