--- On Mon, 10/12/09, Shahrukh Merchant <[email protected]> wrote:
I'm guessing that, at this point, the majority of list members were not
dancing in Buenos Aires at regular milongas (i.e., not counting just
visiting for festivals) on a semi-regular basis pre-2001. But there is
probably a significant minority who were. What's your feeling about this
change? Do you dance less often in Buenos Aires for reasons you
attribute to this change?
Without a doubt. I too, have had problems trying to communicate the feeling,
but I have come up with this: The thrill is gone. Gone are the days of
discovering and being discovered by excellent dancers; from having spirited
discussions with the local women about the dancers we are watching; of going
out to dinner with a group of enthusiasts both local and visiting; of being
asked to go to a specific milonga later in the week to continue dancing with a
leader I have just met. Now, I am older, wider and not so spritely as I was
back in 1996 when I first went to BsAs and so I attribute part of the malaise
to that. But I also sense that I am no longer looked upon as a dance partner
but rather as a source of funds - either for lessons, taxi accompaniment, shoe
sales, or a visa to the US. Things have gotten much more commercial and less
social. New visiting faces are getting lots of attention even if they are
terrible dancers. And...my old
friends are dying out, unable to fund a daily trip to the milongas, or just
too creaky to dance well.
I get more excellent dances at a festival than I do in BsAs. Will I continue
to make an annual trip? Probably. But I will limit my dancing to 3-4 days a
week, mostly afternoon milongas. I will visit with friends, enjoy the
restaurants, the theaters, and the vibe of a big city. I am unlikely to buy
any more tango shoes as the quality has plummeted even with my favorite brand
and I am unwilling to continue to pay the special gringo price after purchasing
12 pairs of those shoes.
Should you go to BsAs if you are a tango dancer? Definitely. It will be new
and wonderful and thrilling to you and you will feel the flavor of tango
everywhere you go if you open your heart to it. Some night a cab driver will
sing tangos to you all the way home and it will be beautiful. Some day you
will chat up a woman in the grocery store who will tell you about her father, a
famous violinist, who invited all the tango greats to his home for Sunday
dinners. And you will see folks like Milena Plebs dancing on a concrete
basketball court in a very blue collar part of the city. But when some of us
old-timers tell you, "You should have been here before....", you will regret
you did not come earlier.
NancyAnnual visitor for 13 years
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