It has become politically correct to say that show tango is not REAL tango. This would have surprised the first milongueros. They did informal tango shows at milongas and also performed on stage and screen. Most of the cast of "Tango Argentino" were milongueros and milongueras. For some insight into milonguero's attitudes toward show tango you might like reading the autobiographical interview on TodoTango.com of Pepito Avellaneda and others.
http://www.todotango.com/english/creadores/pavellaneda.asp Even the youngest couple in "Argentino" who later became full-time dance pros started out as fanatical milonga dancers. That tradition is still alive today, when most professional Argentine show dancers have had much formal training and think of themselves as dancers first. When they've practiced many hours each week and taught multiple classes it's not unusual for them to eat and rest in the evening and then go out to milongas to relax. These pros might or might not dance, and when they dance usually they are indistinguishable from anyone else: simple moves, close embrace, stay in the flow, etc. Unless you know them from shows you'd be hard put to identify them as pros, except for their absolute mastery of movement. But then you'll also see this mastery in others who don't fit today's rather recent image of pros: young, fit, good-looking. Though those Argentine pros may not dance at all at milongas. Argentines view milongas differently to those outside the country, who are often deadly serious about the dance and to whom the social element is important but subordinate to the dancing. In Argentina, and to the Argentines I know where I dance, a milonga is first a social event. It's where you meet friends and family and gossip and snack and smoke and listen to the music and watch the antics of foreigners with usually indulgent amusement. Many Argentines go to local milongas and have for years that are just a short walk away, or drive or hitch rides with friends for slightly longer distances. Every milonga is different, some catering to a very specific crowd such as the very young. But in many it's more usual than not to see three generations of an extended family, including subteens or even infants who watch the dancing with fascination. Sometimes an aunt or an uncle will be a show dancer, maybe full-time but also part-time, especially skilled or attractive women and men who earn extra money each weekend by dance en escenario, maybe in tango dinner shows put on for tourists. Many a full-time professional tango (and other) dancer began dancing at ten or so at a milonga with a proud grandparent as a partner or teacher. Politically conscious tango fans often try to make a clear-cut binary distinction between REAL tango and show tango, but the universe rarely cooperates with such rigid views. Sharing with others mastery of something difficult and wonderful is part of human nature. Outside Argentina this often shows up as "tango crimes" such as racing around a crowded floor or doing whirlwind molinetes. Inside Argentina these "criminals" are usually quickly set straight. So very late at milongas in Argentina, when the crowd thins out and the floor opens up, is when you usually see more showy behavior. And not just by energetic acrobatic younger dancers. Those of advanced years who danced so close and simply in the thick of the evening get a bit of room from their partners and get a bit fancy, showing those who've only had, say, a mere decade of tango dance experience what someone can do who's been dancing for several decades. Larry de Los Angeles http://www.ShapechangerTales.com - 2nd short story added ____________________________________________________________ Hit it out of the park with a new bat. Click now! http://thirdpartyoffers.juno.com/TGL2131/fc/BLSrjnsL78uS3y6tKKYy0WrC5YNKaGyLNM91amtXnadxKhxrasvJL1sL8Uw/ _______________________________________________ Tango-L mailing list [email protected] http://mailman.mit.edu/mailman/listinfo/tango-l
