That’s entertainment at Salsa Fest 2015

Salsa Fest would not be half as festive without entertainment.

Though there are changes this year in how performances will run, the day will include familiar faces and distinctive music.

According to Niesha Whitman, special events manager for the City of Maricopa, there will be one stage instead of two. The main headliners will be interspersed with local performers.

Whitman said the stages were combined because it was hard for the local groups to compete with the main stage performers.

The city keeps a list of performers who have performed in the past. Staff contacts them first for their availability.

This year’s entertainers include the Barrio Latino Band, a genre-free blend of Spanish and English-language cultures through rock, salsa, funk, blues and everything in between.

Havana Soul returns to put a Cuban twist on the salsa party. And the Fiesta Mexicana Dance Company brings the cultures of Central and South America to spectacular performances.

Ballet Folklorico Fuego de Phoenix is back for its colorful traditional performances at 5:15 p.m. and 6:25 p.m.

Maricopa groups showing off their talents will be Desert Sun Performing Arts, an award-winning dance troupe, as well as Arizona All-Star Fyrestorm Cheer, coming off a championship in Las Vegas, and ATA Martial Arts and Karate for Kids of Arizona.

“It gives them a sense of pride in their school and for all of the hard work they’ve done,” said ATA master instructor Lee Feiles. “It also gives them a chance to be leaders as ambassadors for their sport.”

He typically brings 10 “demo” kids. “It’s kind of a special group,” Feiles said. “They have to dedicate quite a bit of time for practice and learning new things for choreography. So it’s a relatively exclusive group.”

Whitman said local entertainment is chosen when they submit applications to perform at a festival. A committee looks through the applications and decides if the acts are appropriate.

“For Salsa (Fest), there weren’t many, so we allowed everyone who applied to participate in the event,” she said.

There are always rules to abide by, including no inappropriate, language, costumes, gestures, etc.

For major acts, the city works with Entertainment Solutions, Inc., in Scottsdale, supplying them with information on the kind of acts being sought and the budget. Entertainment Solutions then matches them up with available performers.