Note To Followers

Ladies:

Have you ever found yourself dancing with a man who, in his infinite wisdom, decides to make you the recipient of his vast tango experience, as he uses the tanda as an opportunity to instruct you?

Of course you have. All followers have.

So there is something you need to know: Attempting to instruct during a milonga is rude, and you should not have to put up with it.

And even if you do not mind, you should never encourage it. Because it is rude.

 So how do we handle it? Well, you have a choice, depending on your level of tolerance, how much you like the leader, and whether or not you ever want to dance with him again.

 1: If you like him and would like to dance with him again: "Can we just dance? I am really enjoying this tanda."

 2: If you don't care if you never dance with him again, but you are not feeling particularly intolerant: Wait until the song ends, say "Thank you" and end the dance. Then don't dance with him again.

 3: If you don't care if you never dance with him again, AND he has really irritated you: Stop dancing in the middle of the song and walk off, leaving him standing there looking like a fool. The advantage to this is that he will never ask you to dance again,

 The last is the nuclear option. You should probably opt for either 1 or 2, unless he is a supreme jerk. And most leaders who do this are not supreme jerks, just well-meaning guys who should know better.

  What you should NOT do is nothing. If you allow him to teach you on the dance floor in the middle of a milonga, you are BOTH complicit in an act of rudeness. Turning the milonga into a private lesson, even from the best of motives, bothers the couples around you, and disturbs the flow of the ronda.

 And having said that, ladies, never NEVER ask for instruction during a milonga. It puts the leader in the awkward spot of having to refuse. If you need that kind of instruction, go to a practica.

Thought For the Day

Teaching beginners to start their Tango with a back step is like teaching a toddler to mouth obscenities.

They do not understand it.

It is socially unacceptable.

It is likely to have negative consequences when they come out with it at inappropriate times.

Tango: Drama or Emotion?

Those of us who have danced Tango for years love the way the shared improvisation to the music allows us to express emotion through the music and the dance. In the best Tangos, the brain is taken out of the equation. Our Tango takes on an almost Zen quality, in which the music, our partner, and all the other dancers in the ronda all come together to express the emotions of the dance.

The problem is that, in Tango as in life, we all too often mistake DRAMA for EMOTION.

When we dance with DRAMA, the focus is on the performance, not on the music, or the connection. And the result often kills the EMOTION.

The DRAMATIC dancers dance figure after figure - ganchos, boleos, sacadas, volcadas - and their dance becomes all about the figures. Women do embellishment after decoration after adornment, giving the impression that they are too restless to actually hear the music. Dancers race around the floor using big, dramatic steps, ignoring the subtle rhythms and emotions that are so much a part of traditional Tangos, and breaking the emotional rapport of all the other couples in the ronda.

We dance to nuevo and alternative Tangos in which the DRAMA slaps you in the face, and scorn the golden age Tangos with their complex, genuine emotions.

And in the process, we lose the true meaning of Tango.

That is not to say there is never a place for DRAMA in Tango. Some tangos call forth dramatic emotions.

But a Tango danced only in the primary colors of DRAMA is an adolescent Tango, not without merit, but lacking depth. The mature Tango dances all the colors of emotion; not just the bright red, yellow and blue, but the mauve, violet,and sage, and even the broken colors, as the music moves us.

Our Tango should be an intimate conversation. We should not shout our emotions to the whole room. When we dance the drama of the music, it should be quiet, considerate drama, without disturbing all the other intimate conversations going on.

Dancing Tango at the salon is a little like singing in a choir. Each part contributes to the beauty of the music, with no one voice overwhelming the rest. And the end result is a harmonious whole.

Some Myths About the Tango Walk

I remember going to a workshop some years ago and being told, "In Argentina they used to make you walk for 6 months before they let you do anything else."

Right.

And when I was a child I had to walk 6 miles to school in the snow.

Uphill.

Both ways.

I have danced Tango for 30 years, all over the world, with dancers who started dancing Tango as long ago as the 1940's. Not one of them ever spent 6 months "just walking" - if by "just walking" you mean pacing around the floor by yourself, in eternal search of "the perfect walk".
But Tango is a walking dance. So let's explore some of the myths of "The Tango Walk".

Myth One: "There is one Ideal Tango Walk. And we all aspire to it"

There are many different ways to walk in Tango, and none of them are the "One True Way". Here is a suggestion: google "great Argentine Tango". Watch how the couples dance. You will notice that the walking styles look very different. They use their feet and knees differently. Some walk heel-toe, while others appear to walk toe-heel. Some lean forward, or stick their chests out. Some stand straight over their feet.  Chances are you will like some more than others. That's OK. Tango leaves lots of room for personal style.

The best dancers have many different tango walks. A good dancer will modify his or her walk to fit each new partner, to fit the music, to suit the quality of the dance floor or the quality of the other dancers on the dance floor. You do not dance the same on a concrete surface as on a smooth wooden floor. You dance differently on a crowded floor than on an open floor. Even the shoes you wear can slightly change your walk.

Myth Two: "You can learn the Tango walk by yourself"

You can practice such things as finding your axis and balance, transferring your weight, forward and backward swivels, and so on by yourself. But it truly takes two to Tango, and you cannot really learn the so-called Tango Walk without doing it with a partner. Balance changes when you have to take into account the balance of your partner. Swivels feel different when done with a partner. The axis of a partnership is not exactly the same as your individual axis. Your walk does not really become a Tango  Walk until you can do it with a partner.

Myth Three: "You need to learn how to walk before you learn anything else"

OK, there is some truth here. But not the way we often think of it. Walking in Tango involves far more than just mechanically schlepping around the floor putting one foot in front of  (or behind) the other. Tango is all  about walking. Everything we do in Tango involves walking. We learn to walk to the heartbeat of the music. We learn to speed it up or slow it down. We learn to change directions. We learn to incorporate rock steps,swivels, and turns. But this is ALL walking. Everything we do in tango involves learning to walk, improving our walk, finding different ways to walk. In Tango we never stop learning to walk.

 Myth Four: "All a leader (or follower) needs to be an enjoyable partner is a good walk"

Again, yes and no. Certainly without a balanced, comfortable walk you will never be a truly enjoyable partner. But if all you know how to do is put one foot in front of the other you will NOT be an enjoyable partner, no matter how elegantly you do it.

You need a whole lot more to be a good tango dancer - things you should be learning from the very beginning. You need to be able to dance to the music, which involves listening to and understanding the music, and interpreting it with rhythm changes and pauses. You need to be able to maneuver in traffic, which involves learning how to dance in place. A"good walk" must include all these things. As a leader, you must not only be able to do these things; you must be able to lead them. And as a folllower, you need to be able to do all these things as your leader leads them.

 What you don't need is a whole lot of fancy, impressive figures. Those can be learned later, if you like. But most, while fun, are unnecessary, and indeed, are impossible to execute safely on a crowded dance floor.

A good Tango Walk is balanced, relaxed, comfortable to the partner, and done to the music. Everything else is personal style. Yes, a good walk is important. But it is less important for how it looks, than for how it nurtures the partnership connection. Because that connection is the one truly indispensable aspect of Argentine Tango.

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Jumping Into The Debate About the Dreaded 8-Count Basic

The so-called 8 count basic, where the leader starts with a back step, then a side step, a lead to the cross, followed by a forward-side resolution, is taught by many tango teachers to total beginners. I have heard lots of explanations as to why they do this - it gets beginners dancing,  it has all the basic movements of the dance, and so on.

I never teach the 8 count basic. Here is why.

1: It is NOT the basic Argentine Tango step. The basic Argentine Tango step is the walk.

2: Good dancers NEVER use it. Why would you teach something that you, personally, would never use?

3: It includes movements that are socially unacceptable. Starting your tango with a leader's back step is like merging onto a highway and immediately putting your car into reverse. In some places this will result in an immediate request to leave the dance floor.

4: Tango is an improvisational dance. An 8 count choreography is the antithesis of improvisation.

5: It doesn't work. A milonga has a unique ebb and flow of movement among the dancers on the floor. The 8 count basic never fits within that ebb and flow.

6: Once a beginner has learned the pattern it takes a long time to get them to let go of it. Why not just avoid the whole problem and not teach it in the first place?

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Tango Culture vs Tango Cult

 One of the things I love about Tango how it is infused with the culture that produced it. But in some Tango groups, appreciation of culture has crossed into slavish devotion to a cult.

 What do I mean by "a cult"? Well, in a cult there is a series of authoritarian rules. And members of the cult derive much of their identity from  unquestioningly following the rules of the cult.  Cult members dress alike, talk alike, act alike. Those who do not adhere strictly to these rules are excluded from the cult.

So when does Tango culture cross over into Tango Cult?  Here are a few examples.

 I have 3 pairs of Tango shoes. One very flashy "brand name" with 3-inch heels, and 2 much simpler, lower-heeled generic pairs. And I occasionally dance in low-heeled Ballroom shoes. Or jazz sneakers. Or moccasins. They all work. But there are communities where, if I do not wear my one pair of Comme Il Fauts, I get asked to dance less, and people assume I am a beginner. That is the sign of a Tango cult.

 I know the Spanish names for all the Tango figures. But I am just as likely to use the English names. English is my native language, after all, and I live in an English-speaking country. But in some communities people will correct me if I use English terms, even though they know exactly what I mean. That is the sign of a Tango cult.

 Tango Culture includes the unspoken invitation to dance - mirada and cabeseo. Tango Cult will not accept a polite verbal request for a dance.

 Tango culture recognizes that there are many ways to dance Tango. Tango Cult says there is only one true way to dance Tango - usually the style of the local Tango guru. Cults have gurus.

 Sharing Tango Culture should be an act of inclusion, not an initiation into an exclusionary club. Cults are exclusionary. I want my Tango community to be warmly inviting.

Not a cult.

You Don't Learn To Dance in Class

I had just finished teaching a drop-in beginner class to a group of 14 students. The music for the milonga was playing, and  one couple from the class started to change their shoes. I encouraged them to stay a bit and dance. One of them replied "We want to get good first".

This reflects a major fallacy among a lot of tango students - that they can learn to dance in a class.

You cannot learn to dance in a class. Classes give you tools for dancing - tools that you can then use to learn to actually dance. But classes do not teach you to dance. Neither, in spite of what many dance teachers tell you, do private lessons.

You learn to dance by getting out on the dance floor and putting to use all those tools and concepts you have been learning in classes and private lessons. Until you do that, you have not begun to learn to dance.

This is even more true for Tango than for most partner dances, given the improvisational nature of the dance. Almost anyone can learn choreography in a class. But improvisation can only be learned on the dance floor.

Beginners who start dancing socially from day one become good dancers much more quickly than those who wait. Don't be afraid of developing bad habits. Bad habits can be corrected.  And don't be afraid of what other people think. The ones who matter will respect your determination to learn.

So get out on the floor and dance - it really is the only way to learn.

A brief note to experienced members of a tango community. Encourage your beginners! A tango community that does not grow eventually dies.

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Rules for A Crowded Dance Floor

(This is a repeat of a blog I published last year. but with all the holiday milongas on the schedule, I felt it was a timely reminder.)

 Dancing on a crowded dance floor is much like driving in heavy traffic, and the rules are much the same.

LEADERS:

1. Use caution as you enter the dance floor. Wait for a break in the flow of traffic. Make eye contact with the approaching leader so you know he sees you. Merge into the flow of the dance like a driver merging onto the highway - smoothly, with no sudden stops.

2: Travel counterclockwise, in the line of dance. Avoid stepping backwards, just as you avoid backing up on a busy street.

3. Be aware of the flow of traffic. On a crowded dance floor dancers travel as a group, starting and stopping together. Maintain a consistent distance between you and the couple ahead of you,

4. A crowded dance floor will have multiple lanes of dancers - an outer lane, one or two middle lanes, and maybe an inner lane. Stay in your lane. The more crowded the dance floor is, the less you should consider passing or changing lanes. And avoid passing on the right. That puts you in the leader’s blind spot

5. Keep your dancing small and simple. Enjoy the music and the connection, and save the fancy steps for a less crowded venue.

FOLLOWERS

1. Be aware of your surroundings. Do not dance with your eyes closed unless you know your leader can be totally trusted to follow the above rules, and the overall level of dancing is high. Do not step into another couple just because your leader leads it. This is your dance too.

2. Keep your feet on the floor, and your heels down. Those stilettos are a pair of weapons attached to your shoes. Polite people do not aim weapons at others.


EVERYONE: a crowded dance floor is not a good place to show off your fancy moves. So don't. Keep it small, keep it simple, be polite to the other people on the floor, and you will come to appreciate the trancendental experience of immersing yourself in the dance.

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Take Care of Your Tango Feet

Dancers know that painful feet can take the fun out of Tango faster than just about anything. So it pays to take care of our feet. Here are some things you can do so that sore feet do not interfere with your Tango bliss.

  Oh, Those Gorgeous Shoes!

We women just LOVE the look of high, stiletto tango heels. But unless we also love dancing on damaged feet, we need to take special care when we buy Tango shoes.

Podiatrists recommend that women avoid wearing heels that are higher than 3 inches. Anything higher stresses your joints in a way that can cause permanent damage. So ideally, for healthy feet, we should wear a heel between one and three inches. The higher the heel the more padding you will need under the pads of the toes. High heels throw your weight on the front of the foot, which can cause metatarsalgia. This is especially true in middle aged or older women, because the natural padding in the front of the foot decreases with age. I know you have heard that padding under the ball makes it harder to feel the floor. But so does pain. So we need to decide what is more important. I choose a somewhat lower heel - 2.75 inches - which lets me get away with less padding.

 Overpronation

 You know how some teachers tell you to press the ball of the foot onto the floor when you walk? This may create a lovely line, but it also creates overpronation. Overpronation happens when your weight is distributed toward the inside edge of the foot, rather than being centered in the middle of the foot. Overpronation causes all kinds of foot injuries, including achilles tendonitis and plantarfasciitis. The solution is to concentrate on keeping your weight in the center of your foot. 

Dancing on your toes:

 There was a time when a lot of teachers encouraged women to dance on their toes - to never let the heels touch the ground As a result there are a lot of Tango dancers suffering from metatarsalgia. Fortunately this has gone out of fashion. But if you are still doing it, stop. Not only is it bad for your feet, but it shortens your extension and interferes with balance.

 Take care of your feet. Remember - you want your feet to be able to Tango in 10 years -or 20 - or more.

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THE WALK: It May Not Mean What You Think

 Over and over, when you are first introduced to Tango, you are told: It's all about the walk. You have to have a good walk in order to dance Tango.

 But "walking" in Tango does not mean what it does in everyday life. Normally, when we go for a walk, it involves getting from one place to another, in a straight line, and in a fairly regular rhythm. But when we talk about the Tango Walk, we are not talking about destination, or direction, or tempo. We are talking about technique.

 In Tango, we can "walk" in any direction, forward, backward, side to side, in place, or in a circle. We can even "walk" while standing still.

 Learning the Tango walk involves learning HOW, not WHAT. How do we use our feet to gather energy from our connection to the floor? How do we find and maintain our axis? How do we keep our connection forward, toward our partner?

 If you watch any good dancer, in demos or at the best milongas, you will note that they seldom take more than 3 or 4 steps in a straight line before stopping, or turning, or changing direction. Tango is not a linear dance. It moves, then stops. It turns, one way then another.

 Teachers need to recognize this, and realize that learning the Tango Walk involves learning to stop, every bit as much as learning to step.

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Welcoming Beginners to Argentine Tango

 A healthy Tango community is one that is constantly growing. As people leave, new people join. And integrating new dancers into your community is a big part of that process.

 Beginners need two things to entice them to join a Tango community. They need to be intrigued or inspired by the dance itself, AND they need to be made to feel comfortable in the social environment of a milonga. The first is already accomplished by the time a beginner shows up for their first class. It is the job of a good teacher to keep encouraging the student's interest in the dance.

 The second - comfort within the Tango community - is the job of everyone at the milonga. So what can you do? Here are 5 things you can do that will encourage your beginners to keep coming, and to keep learning.

1: Dance with them. This is the number one, MOST important thing you can do. A beginner neither needs or expects to dance every dance. But if they dance no dances, again and again, they will not come back. So ask them to dance. It is OK to ask for the third song of the Tanda if you do not want to commit to the whole set.

 2. Talk to them. Introduce yourself, if it is the first time you have met. Offer them refreshments if any are available. Talk about Tango, or anything else. Be a good host.

 3. Don't overwhelm them. Feed them information about Tango in digestible bites. Leaders, if you ask them to dance, use this opportunity to lead a simple Tango. Followers, shelve the adornments, which can distract or confuse a beginner leader.

 4: Don't criticize or correct. For example, if a beginner asks you to dance verbally, do not get on your high horse about the cabeceo. If he stays with Tango he will absorb all that soon enough. Likewise, do not make a point of trying to fix your partner's dancing. No teaching on the dance floor, remember?

 5: Make them part of your community. If a group of you go out for coffee after the milonga or practica, invite them. Let them know of other Tango opportunities, and convey the idea that they would be welcome to attend them.

 Remember, you were once a beginner yourself. All the best dancers were once beginners. If beginners feel comfortable in your community, they will keep coming back. And if they keep coming back, eventually they will not be beginners any more.

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Tango Trust

Argentine Tango is an intimate dance. We dance in the arms of a person we may not know well, or even at all. When we step out onto the dance floor, we are implicitly agreeing to this intimate physical contact - cheek to cheek, breast to breast. And trust is a necessary component of this agreement.

Tango is essentially an impersonal intimacy. While there are no physical boundaries, there are firm boundaries of expectation. Tango promises nothing, beyond the bliss of translating the music into a shared experience.

 Tango is not a seduction. If you use your Tanda for that purpose it is a betrayal of trust. The embrace is for dancing, not for flirtation. If you use the embrace to stroke your partner's back or tickle his neck, or deliberately rub her breasts, you are breaking trust. And once that trust is broken, Tango is no longer a shared intimacy. It has become a trespass.

 Does this mean you can never flirt with a Tango partner? Of course not. Flirtation can add a wonderful intensity to Tango. But do not initiate a flirtation on the dance floor. It is not fair. Wait until the tanda is over, and your partner can accept or refuse without pressure. Once you have established a MUTUAL flirtation, you can, if both parties wish, continue it on the dance floor.

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You Might Be A Tango Snob If....

Face it. We all have a bit of the Tango snob in us. How can we help it? No other dance combines intimacy, creativity, artistry and culture quite like Tango. So it is easy to become a bit chauvinistic about it.

So in a spirit of lighthearted fun, see if you recognize yourself.

 You might be a Tango snob if....

 You never have fewer than 3 pairs of Tango shoes in your car - and they are all Comme Il Fauts...because you would never wear anything else.

 You refuse all verbal requests to dance. Real Tango dancers cabeceo!

 You serve mate at your house milonga.

You have been heard to express the opinion that Nuevo is not REAL Tango.

You never arrive at a milonga during the first hour.

Your computer wallpaper is a slide show of La Boca.

 You refer to Tango stars by their first names only.

 You discuss Tango in Spanish....even though you don't speak Spanish

 You complain if the DJ plays anything recorded after 1948.

You don't understand why anyone would ever dance anything but Tango.

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As I Get Older....

Those of us who have been dancing Tango for many years, who are now in our sixties, or seventies, or eighties, are confronting a sad reality. There comes a point where no matter how many classes I take - how many private lessons - I am never going to get better.

 I have reached the pinnacle. And there is no place to go but down. As my body ages, things that were easy ten years ago become less so. And as I struggle with the aches and pains that naturally come with getting older, Tango is no longer the effortless joy it once was.

 I get asked to dance less. I sit and watch while lovely young women dance every dance. And I grieve for what I have lost.

 Many Tango dancers, when they reach this point, stop dancing Tango altogether. But not me. That is partly because the joy of teaching Tango - of nurturing a new generation of dancers - never grows old.

But more importantly, aging has a way, in Tango as in life, of burning away the nonessentials, of annealing the experience. What is left is the true meaning of Tango - creativity in intimacy.

 I may have fewer tools with which to be creative, as my body refuses to execute some of the dramatic nuevo steps. But Haiku is just as beautiful as dramatic verse, and just as satisfying.

I may dance less, but the dances mean more because they are with partners I cherish; partners I do not need to impress because that is not why we dance Tango.

 When I was a young Tango dancer I used to watch the old milonguero couples dance together. Their dancing was beautiful in a way that brought tears to my eyes, and touched me in a way I could not really understand.

 Now I do.

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Tango Drama: Just Say No - Please!

Tango drama -

 It is hard to resist.

 It is impossible to avoid.

 Which teachers are feuding? Who is sleeping with their student? Who is dating whom? Who has broken up, and who is to blame? Who is cheating on their spouse? Who are the sexual opportunists? Who are the dance creeps and stalkers? Whose feelings are hurt and by whom?

 Some people enjoy the drama. I am not one of them. If you are another who does not appreciate Tango drama, I have a few suggestions:

 1: Don't date within the Tango community. If you choose to disregard this advice, don't talk about your relationship with others in community. And be aware that if you break up, especially if it is a hostile breakup, one or both of you will probably find yourselves uncomfortable returning to familiar Tango haunts.*

 *I made one exception to this rule, 16 years ago when I began a relationship with a former student. But we kept it so private that when we got married 5 years later many in the community didn't even know we had been a couple.

 2. Don't gossip about other people in the community. Thoughtful news is one thing - salacious gossip is something else. Who just got back from Argentina is appropriate to talk about; who they slept with while there is not. If someone starts a conversation about another Tango dancer that drifts into unpleasant gossip, smile and change the subject. Be aware that if you talk about someone in your Tango community it WILL get back to them.

 3. If you have a personality conflict with another dancer, handle it yourself. Do not drag the rest of the Tango community into your personal relationship problems. The exception to this is the groper or the stalker. Such antisocial behavior, if it persists, needs to be brought to the attention of the local organizer. And if you have any reason to believe the behavior is part of a larger pattern, your fellow dancers should be warned. And teachers and organizers need to be willing to warn and, if necessary, ban serious offenders.

 4: Support your local teachers, but don't involve yourself in their drama. It is fine to praise your favorite teacher, but avoid criticizing other teachers.

And teachers: Avoid criticizing other teachers and promoters, even if they trash-talk you. Don't try to embroil your students in a competition between teachers.

 These are rules that I have developed over 20 years as a Tango dancer, teacher and promoter. Every time I have broken them I have regretted it - except the one time that led to marriage. (in Tango there is always an exception).

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Some thoughts on "Back Leading"

"Backleading" is a term leaders frequently use when the follower did something he did not expect, and as a result the connection broke. But that term implies that the broken connection is the follower's fault. I really want to try to stop thinking in terms of fault.

 A broken connection can happen for many reasons, including a communications glitch, a balance problem on the part of either person, or differences in style. Blaming all these things on the follower is counterproductive. Let us look at them individually.

 Communication between partners is a two-way street. All too often when there is a problem, the follower is told she didn't "listen" to the leader, or didn't "wait for his command". News flash - tango is not a master-slave relationship, or a teacher-student relationship. It is the job of the leader to listen to the follower, every bit as much as it is the follower's job to listen to the leader. True, the leader starts the conversation. But after that, it is a dialog, with the leader making suggestions and the follower adding her ideas.

 Lack of balance is one of the most common reasons for a broken connection. This can cause either person to take an unexpected step. In a good partnership, each person is not only responsible for their own balance, but also for avoiding causing their partner to go off balance. Only practice can solve this connection problem.

 Style differences are a frequent cause of broken connections. This is why we dance tandas - it gives us an opportunity to resolve those differences, and work toward a mutual accommodation. Compromise is the key. A leader who merely accuses the follower of back leading, and who puts no effort in reaching a compromise, is not a partner. He is a boss. True, sometimes the styles are so different that dancing together will never be enjoyable. In that case both people should "agree to disagree" and find other people to dance with.

 When you step onto the floor at a milonga, you have agreed to dance together. Maintaining the connection is the responsibility of both people. Sometimes that means the follower becomes the leader and the leader becomes the follower - either intentionally or unintentionally. Stay connected. Dance with your partner. Forget blame. This dance is about "us", not about "you" or "me".

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Give That Dancer A Ticket!

Many Argentine Tango teachers start beginners off with the so-called 8 count basic - the leader steps back, side, forward to the cross, then a forward-side resolution. Most of my students know how I feel about that.

The 8 count basic starts with two extremely disruptive, often socially unacceptable moves - a back step against the line of dance, followed by a side step toward the center of the room. Neither step is intrinsically wrong. But both can be very wrong in certain contexts.

 Consider that side step. When dancing Tango, I often think in terms of a traffic lane. When you are dancing Tango in a large open uncrowded space, your lane is quite wide, and you can comfortably step to the side without leaving your lane. However, on a very crowded floor the lanes are very narrow. The only way to take a side step without leaving your lane is to take it along the line of dance.

 It is like the difference between moving into the left lane on a divided highway, and moving into the left lane on a crowded 2 lane city street. The first is both common and exceptable. The second will get you a ticket.

 Ditto back steps. Example: if you are driving down a deserted country road and you miss your turn there is no problem with stopping, backing up, and making your turn. But if you did it on a crowded city street you would get a ticket. Same with back steps in Tango. The more crowded the floor the less acceptable they are.

Side and back steps are a part of tango. Everyone uses them. If the floor is crowded we use them carefully, sparingly, with great awareness for those around us, and keep them very small. If the floor is packed like a subway car at rush hour we cannot safely use them at all.

 There are no Tango police handing out traffic tickets for dangerous navigation at a milonga, thank goodness. So we must police ourselves, dancing with courtesy, care, and consideration.

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How to Choose a Tango Teacher

Disclaimer: I am a tango teacher. I think I am a pretty good one. Over 30 years of dancing Tango, I have taken classes from many excellent teachers, and from teachers that did not impress me. Over the years I have tried to incorporate teaching techniques from the best teachers, while avoiding the worst mistakes. So here is what I look for in a Tango teacher.

 How well do their students dance? Equally important, DO their students dance? This is the first thing I look for. Go to a milonga. Watch the dancing. When you see a good dancer, ask where they learned their Tango, and what local teachers they recommend.

 Once you have some recommendations, it is time to check out a class or two. Here are some things I look for.

 Does the teacher talk for most of the class? Find another teacher. Students learn by dancing. If the students are not dancing for more that half the class time, go elsewhere.

 How clearly does the teacher explain things? This is very subjective. Can YOU understand the concepts the teacher is trying to impart?

 How is the class pacing? Does the teacher spend enough time covering a topic before moving on? Do you feel overwhelmed with material? Conversely, does the class drag to the point where you are frustrated and bored? Again, this is subjective. Students learn at different rates, and teachers have to try to accommodate multiple learning speeds. So look for a teacher whose pacing works for you.

 Can the teacher lead and follow equally well? If not, they cannot teach each part equally well.

 Do you like the teacher? In the long run this is very important. I have taken some excellent weekend workshops from teachers whose personalities rub me the wrong way. But over time personality conflicts do matter.

 Do your research. If you are lucky you either live in a community where you have multiple choices, or the local teacher is a good fit. But do not hesitate to travel reasonable distances to find a good teacher, rather than settling for someone who doesn't work for you.S

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It's OK To Be Average

At any milonga there are always a few dancers that catch everyone's attention. Their dancing is superb; their lead and follow is effortless; their musicality is outstanding.

 And then there is everyone else. They are the dancers whose style is not particularly noteworthy, whose lead and follow is adequate, and whose musicality at least shows that they are listening to the music.

 It is not necessary to be the best. It is not even necessary to be the best you can be. It is OK to be average. Most people are. I would much rather dance with an average dancer who is seriously into sharing the experience than a superb dancer who is seriously into his own dancing.

 It is OK to love Argentine Tango without being fanatic about it. Passion is intoxicating, it is true - and Argentine Tango can certainly inspire intense passion. But it is also Ok to merely enjoy Tango. It is OK to dance Tango without spending all your excess hours and dollars on Tango classes and lessons. It is OK to relax, be yourself, and enjoy interpreting the music in the arms of a congenial partner, without feeling inadequate because you are not one of the best dancers on the floor.

 A very wise Tango dancer once said "Competitive Tango makes as much sense as competitive kissing". Striving to be the best at Tango is kind of like striving to be the best at sex - or meditation. There is always more to learn, but if you allow what you do not know or cannot do to spoil the pleasure of the moment, you have missed the point.

 Once you have learned the basics of floor-craft, and how to lead and follow comfortably, you have all you need. Two average dancers can love the dance together just as well as the best dancers on the floor.

 So dance your own Tango, based upon your own desire, ability, and resources. It is your Tango. Enjoy.

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The Tango Menace

The Tango Menace is familiar to all who have spent much time dancing Tango. This is the person who constantly bumps into other dancers, or who uses more than his share of the floor - who causes confusion and sometimes injury. Usually he is the leader, since the leader has most control over the shape of the dance.

 Learning to handle The Tango Menace is a necessary skill for any tango community. But there are different types of menace, and they require different handling. Here are some of the most common.

 The Beginner Menace

It  is just a fact - new dancers on a crowded dance floor are a menace. They do not yet have the skills necessary to navigate a crowded dance floor, and are concentrating so hard on what they have recently learned that they really can't pay attention to where they are going.


 The solution: Give them plenty of space. The good news is that beginners tend to be fairly predictable, so you can usually avoid problems by not crowding them too closely. Encourage your beginners to dance at the beginning of a Milonga when the floor is less crowded, and avoid later hours when there are more people on the dance floor. And teachers, introduce the concept of good floor-craft EARLY.

The Ego-Driven Menace

The ego-driven menace is often an excellent dancer. He is frequently a superb performer, and many women love to dance with him. The problem is that on a crowded dance floor there is no room for individual ego.

The focus on a crowded dance floor should be on becoming one with the room - dancing with every other couple on the floor. This concept is foreign to the ego-driven menace.

The ego-driven menace seldom collides with other dancers. He is too competent for that. But he leaves multiple collisions in the turbulence of his wake, as he uses far more than his share of the floor, and dancers are driven to take unexpected steps in order to give him room.

The solution: An intervention. Have a respected member of the community, preferably the organizer, meet with the offender and explain that his dance style is causing problems for other leaders. This has to be very direct. A general announcement to the community will have no effect, since the ego-driven menace will never believe you could be talking about HIM.

Chances are, even if an intervention is handled reasonably tactfully, the ego-driven menace will get insulted and find another place to dance. Problem solved.

Very rarely, the ego-driven menace is the local dance teacher or organizer. You might still try an intervention, but it is unlikely to be successful. If you have the option, dance elsewhere. Otherwise, do your best to avoid this menace, and be hyper-alert when he is on the floor.

 The Clueless Menace

 This leader has studied Tango for years, danced in numerous places, and runs into people wherever he goes. He cannot help it. He has no spacial awareness, is lacking in coordination, and has little ability to improvise on the fly. And it is unlikely he will ever be able to change.

Solution: Stay out of his way. There is nothing else you can do but give him plenty of room. There is no point in trying to correct him; it won't work.

 The Weaponized Menace

 This is the follower with 3 inch stilettos, who loves off-the floor embellishments and high boleos. She is especially dangerous when combined with an ego-driven leader. 

Solution: As with the ego-driven menace, an intervention is the only solution. Explain that on a crowded dance floor, heels must remain on the ground, even if the leader is trying to fling them around in the air. A follower is responsible for her own weapons. She is well within her rights to refuse a gancho or to keep all boleos small and on the floor when dancing on on a tight floor.

 It is often up to the organizer and the experienced dancers to set the tone of the milonga. If the best dancers are dancing conservatively and thoughtfully when the floor gets crowded, the example they set will encourage others to do likewise.

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