Post date: Jan 19, 2015 1:21:17 PM
Our monthly milonga is this coming Saturday, January 24, at Branch Road. We'll begin dancing at 9 pm and tango into the wee hours of the morning. If you can, please bring a special snack or beverage to share. As always, guests, whether nondancing friends or tango-curious, are welcome. If you are new to tango, this is a great opportunity to meet and dance with tangueras/os in our fabulous tango community. (See FAQs for Milongas below.) Write to me back channel if you need directions to Branch Road. If you can offer a ride or need a ride, please send me your contact information and I will connect drivers with riders. Hope you can join us for this free Community Argentine Tango event!
Milonga FAQs:
1. What makes a milonga different than a practica (like Tuesday Tango)?
At practicas we help each other out, work on practicing our fundamentals, and try new combinations. Milongas are parties, so not the place to practice, but just dance and enjoy. In fact, it is considered very poor form to ask for help, and especially bad form to instruct or give advice. If you really want to work on something for a few minutes, you and your partner should use space other than on the dance floor.
2. What’s the dress code for milongas?
Our milongas are dressier than laid-back Tuesday Tango, so break out the sparkles or that outfit for clubbing that you never get to wear. If you have no sparkles, no worries—we will still be happy to see you and dance with you.
3. I don’t have tango shoes. What should I wear?
If you have leather-soled or other smooth-soled shoes that allow you to pivot and are somewhat flexible, they are the best for dancing. But a clean pair of thick gym socks or flexible jazz dance shoes are great, too. In fact, Isotoner ballet slippers ($12 to $20 online) work well as inexpensive alternatives to jazz shoes. If you do wear street shoes, PLEASE make sure that the heels and soles do not have visible nails or rough spots/edges—our milonga floors are wood and need more gentle treatment than Webster’s concrete floor.
4. Where can I learn more about milongas?
There are many sites that share the “rules”—here’s one that keeps the spirit of Buenos Aires tango culture, but is adapted to our U.S. context: http://www.tangoconcepts.com/etiquette.html and here is another: http://www.tangoevolution.com/generalmilongaetiquette.pdf