Jane Cahane is originally from Washington, DC, US, although has she has now spent half her life in Dublin, Ireland, Britain and elsewhere in Europe, she describes herself as a tri-national -- British, Irish and American.

A fluent natural dancer with a life-long passion for music and dance, she has also studied ballet, jazz, tap, contemporary, belly dance, Appalachian County folk dancing, Irish step dancing, disco/hustle and ceroc. Since discovering salsa in 1994, she has concentrated on learning, teaching and promoting salsa and other Latin dance styles, and is known to many in the UK salsa scene by her trademark hair flowers, vibrant personality and unique dance style, which represents a fusion of the different salsa and Latin dance styles she teaches.

Her husband Roland, a sales consultant in fashion jewellery, occasionally assists her as a DJ and co-teacher. She has no children, but has four stepchildren and twin Burmese cats.

Teaching experience and credentials

Jane is a qualified and inspirational teacher of adults, and has also worked as a secondary school English teacher in Buckinghamshire. She holds a CELTA (Certificate in English Language Teaching), a BA Degree in English Literature and Creative Writing, and a part-completed MA in Applied English Linguistics and Arthurian Literature Studies. In addition to teaching salsa and EFL, she has also taught and led various art and creative writing workshops.

Jane originally learnt Cuban-Colombian-style salsa in 1994 from Salsa-Fusion, and then went on to learn other styles from various London and international teachers. Having begun teaching salsa classes in London before moving out to Buckinghamshire in late 1996, Jane taught salsa in the High Wycombe area for over 10 years. She was one of the pioneers of salsa in the Buckingshamshire area, having initially begun teaching salsa classes at the Spring Gardens Arts Centre in February 1997. She was subsequently taken on by the Wycombe Dance Project to teach courses in salsa and related Latin dances. After that, she was invited to run several workshops, one-off day courses and performances for various organisations throughout the county. She also ran a successful club night at the Litten Tree in High Wycombe before being recruited to teach salsa courses for Buckinghamshire County Council’s Adult Learning Department in 1999.

Jane has taught courses and workshops from Beginners to Advanced levels, as well as running various club nights in the area. She as developed a unique syllabus with detailed teaching resources to provide learners with a solid foundation in the basics of body movement, ladies’ and men’s styling, timing, musical interpretation and shines/footwork, etc in all the main styles of salsa danced in the UK (Cuban, cross-body on1 and on2 and Colombian), also several related Latin dances such as merengue, rueda de casino, cumbia, pachanga, boogaloo, cha cha cha and bachata. A few of Jane’s former students are now teachers themselves, and cite Jane as an excellent inspiration.

She has also taught salsa for several corporate and group events, choreographed wedding dances, appeared in a salsa programme on TV and given private lessons/choreography training (for individuals auditioning for Strictly Dance Fever, etc) on request. She recently joined the Seraphim dance performance group so is currently concentrating on performing, however she is available to teach small groups, individual or couples on a private basis or as a guest teacher for other clubs or schools, either in London, Buckinghamshire or surrounding counties (telephone 01494 520677 or 07899 757400).

Writing and editing credentials

Apart from her recent brief stint as a secondary school English teacher, Jane has worked professionally in publishing most of her life, building up a diverse career as a full- or part-time/freelance writer, editor, publications and publicity manager, sub-/copy-editor (books and magazines), production editor, print buyer, Americaniser/Angliciser, senior commissioning editor, editorial project manager, proofreader and layout artist/graphic designer. She is a member of the Society of Freelance Editors and Proofreaders in the UK, and has previously been a full-time freelancer with Editorial Experts, Incorporated in the US.

Combining her love of salsa with her skills as a writer and editor, she has published several salsa-related articles in Latin London, ?Que Pasa? and Salsavine magazines, and contributes features regularly to salsa-oriented internet sites such as http://www.londonsalsascene.info/. She continues to write her own fiction and poetry, some of which has been published externally.

She is available on a freelance basis for any writing, editing, sub-editing or proofreading commissions, including writing editorial for dance professionals for use in their own printed or electronic publicity (contact no: 01494 520677/07899 757400).