Well, let's see....where to begin? First of all, as a professional
ballet/contemporary dancer, for a large portion of my life, I appreciate that
dance needs to be a "lively art" and therefore, continually evolving, changing
and reflecting, to a large extent, cultural/era specificities(such as: "cargo
pants" vs "tango suits", etc.).....I'm definitely down with that concept! Yet,
today, we are still able to enjoy the great, classical ballets, frozen in time,
as well as the most contemporary and avant garde ones and they are all called
"ballet". Supposedly, the Finnish tango is "frozen" in the tango of the
twenties and they have no interest in evolving their style. Is this a more
"real tango" because it hasn't changed, for almost 100 years? Or is "it" more
from contemporary pilgrims/portenos, living in BA, evolving the dance, daily;
sometimes(depending), dancing tango in cargo pants, flip flops and to Elvis
Presley, others, in the little black
dress, high heels
and to Troilo? Who's to say? Both of these views of tango(plus the entire
continuum between)are valid, here and worth considering, in this discussion, I
feel.
Perhaps, we are asking the wrong questions. Perhaps, tango afficionados are
missing the point and think they only come to BA to dance "the real, classic
Argentine tango", to find that, instead, there is a lively art, here, changing
with the times/fashions/artists, like any other viable art will do and maybe,
looking for the "real tango", in BA, is like trying to know the sound of one
hand clapping. Instead, after living here for three, amazing years, I have
found that the tango is sooo much more than just a dance(or specific "style",
thereof)...the actual dance appears to be merely the "tip of the tango
iceberg", if you will. Instead, you will find the "real tango" in the blood of
the rioplatense(Uruguayos, tambien/Montevideo)people, being expressed daily, in
their attitudes, customs, desires, food, wine, humor, rhythms of life(even tho
they don't dance a lick), as well as in the glorious, hothouse world
of musicians, dancers, singers, composers, of the tango classico. The dance
does not exist in an artistic vacuum but rather, in the context of this culture
and that is what, in the end, I believe people come here, for...to "feel the
tango" context, rather than determine a "perfect style". In fact the more you
are here, the more open that definition becomes. If there IS any one,
consistent element that continues to run through all these discussions, though,
it's the "connection" of tango that people seek, within themselves and each
other and BA provides that constant feeling of connection, with your family,
neighbors, dance buds and "the BA life", from whence this seductive dance
comes. There's nothing like "swimming in the BA soup for awhile" just to make
your tango more juicy, soulful and connected, no matter what style you
prefer. Also, not just attending classes and milongas, while here but going to
theatre, opera, poetry readings, tango
music/singer performances(no dancing), art/photog shows, will make your tango
dancing better.....
not necessarily more classic, flashier, better technically or even more
nuevo(2-3 weeks simply isn't enough to accomplish that, even with
intensives)but more importantly, you can go away with "many more miles" and a
more organic center/perspective that can't be replicated anywhere else. You
can experience directly, the cultural position that the dance of tango
inhabits, in this warm, sensual city/country(and Uruguay, btw). Then, your
personal style merely becomes the "icing on your tango cake".
Besos y abrazos, Dierdre N. Black
ps Thanks, Brick, for such an articulate, BA visitor's statement, your
thanks to your "BA crew" of helpful tangueras and for being open to all that
the BA tango world has to offer. Looking forward to the next time.....always
more to enjoy!! Venga y Bailamos, tangueros!! dnb
_______________________________________________
Tango-L mailing list
[email protected]
http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
