I see you baby shaking that ass

'Latin Lava' - It's the hot and sexy stuff that JLo and Ricky Martin are made of. It's also a celebration of Latin culture. Samba, Tango, Salsa, Capoeira, hot sexy grooves, frenzied percussionists and rapidly gyrating hips, and if that makes you feel good - it's also for charity.

'I really love the attitude of the South Americans, their lifestyle and outlook is wonderful. I taught English there for six months and was saddened by the amount of poverty I saw, so upon my return I decided that I wanted to give something back to the people who welcomed me into their lives.'

Lisa Bentham is the instigator and organiser of 'Latin Lava' and with a couple of equally enthusiastic friends has been working feverishly to turn her idea into a Latin flavoured extravaganza.

'It was important for me to be able to raise money, but it had to be through an exciting celebration of Latin culture, which is ultimately giving something back to where it all came from. With a small group of people and an enormous amount of support from both the Latin community and people around Melbourne, it's all coming together very well.'

In the slick surroundings of Seven Nightclub, Lisa promises a line up of entertainment that will ensure that this is no ordinary club night. Emblazoned with passion and a love for partying, the hottest bands and the crème of Melbourne's Latin DJs will be accompanied by travelling percussionists, artisan displays and of course a parade of dancers; Argentine Tango, Brazilian Capoeira, Columbian Salsa, Cuba Son, and Samba.

The festivities will be opened with the blissful atmospherics of 'Amamzonas' Andean Panpipes. Followed by Latin Hood and Sea Baths regular DJ Naseem, who will be spinning the best in Latin grooves. 'Los Chicanos' of Idibidi and Cape Lounge fame will be sure to channel the true soul of Cuban Son and Grant Smilie and his 'Beat Phreaks' will be doing their part to whip the crowd into a frenzy, whilst DJ Mark John and percussionist Aljus will be combining some sensuous house with feisty live percussion.

The main act will be 'Combo la Revelacion,' an 11 Piece Salsa band that recently had the whole crowd 'dancing like dust devils' at the Meredith Music Festival. Formed in 1986 by Jorge Aguilar, arranger and director, they are regarded as one of Australia's foremost Latin American bands. With fiery brass arrangements, exceptional musical precision and an onslaught of highly addictive percussion, there will be dancing room only when 'Combo la Revelacion' hit the stage.

'I'm very excited about these guys performing. When we asked them initially, we thought that only their 6 piece band would play, but they happily offered to have all 11 members perform, there will be loads of different instruments and sexy Latin dancers.'

Naturally with anything Latin you can expect a lot of sexy dancing, with hip rotation so fast it would give most of us a dislocation at best. As Lisa points out though, even if hip swivelling isn't your thing, this should certainly not deter you.

'There are many Latin style clubs/bars where it can be a little intimidating, you know to the point where you just won't get up off your chair. This is not one of those events. There will be people there who can and can't dance to Latin music, and none of that matters. I certainly can't move my hips like that, but it's the sort of music you just can't sit down to' laughs Lisa.

As we all shake, swirl and gyrate our night away, it's always good to know that someone else out there will be benefiting from our enjoyment. With all money from ticket sales being donated to the 'World Vision Andean Permaculture Project,' your ass shaking will be for a very worthy cause.

Lisa explains. 'Unlike the indigenous community here in Australia, the people of Ecuador and Peru do not get any financial assistance from the government. I chose the Ecuador and Peru project because I have witnessed the poverty of these people, and th Tags