Youth leisure in the rumba experience

The rumba is a leisure space frequented by young people. However, the experience of rumba implies a sum of elements that intertwine and give meaning to young people seeking or creating these spaces for their leisure. Among these elements are the music, the bodily performances, and interactions with the physical and virtual environment they make. This poster will present a research exercise that seeks to recognise the rumba experiences from the point of view of young women to uncover the practices and narratives of this experience. Through the narrative of experiences, a group of women present their rumba practice. Therefore, autoethnography was used as a qualitative methodology to give a leading role to the researchers, and their experience was the object of reflection and systematic analysis to unravel the relevant elements that would uncover the experience of rumba as a space for youth leisure. Among the results found, the following stand out: (1) the bodily experience, in which the body becomes a leading actor in the attire it wears, the rhythms it dances to, the sensual and sexual movements it communicates, the harassment and tensions during the dance, among others; (2) the necessary care practices, especially for women, which range from safe transport to and from the rumba, careful consumption of alcohol and psychoactive substances, the use of alcohol and psychoactive substances, the use of drugs, and the use of alcohol as an alcoholic beverage, among others; (3) the nuances of the rumbera experience, according to the territory where it takes place, since, depending on the place, the rhythms, attire, movements and care vary; (4) the use of technologies as a possibility to find rumbas, to agree on outings to rumbear with friends, and to share the rumbera experience; and (5) the influence of the music, for its contents, rhythms, intensities, and forms and companies to dance to it. The above configures the rumbera experience as a possibility of youth leisure that allows the rumberas to live a moment of liberation from stress, broaden and strengthen friendships, and enjoy and have fun. All this is under social and cultural codes and psychosocial practices that women learn and follow to inscribe themselves in the rumbero context.