[Tango-L] Club Gricel in Buenos Aires--things aren't the way they used to be -- Part 2

[Janis Kenyon]

The best thing to happen in the milongas is the public no-smoking policy
since October.  Dancers are accustomed to going outside to smoke, where they
usually have company.

The worst thing happening in the milongas is taxi dancers who can't dance.
They stand out in the evening milongas because they are young (30-something)
and usually wearing a suit.  They look good in their suits, but it's their
dance skills which leave much to be desired.  We test-drive a new car before
buying, but what about a taxi dancer?

Take last Monday night at Club Gricel, for instance.  I was seated near a
table of six women who had hired a taxi dancer for the night.  He had his
long black hair tied in a ponytail and wore a black shirt and pants.  He
looked presentable, but it was clear that he was there to do a job.  He
would follow one of the women to the floor, move her around for two dances,
and return to the table for another woman, and dance her around for two
dances to finish the tanda.  It took half a dance to see that he can't
dance.  It was the blind leading the blind.  It didn't matter whether it was
tango, vals or milonga.  He had absolutely no feel for the music.  It was
especially painful watching him leading a series of forward ochos in place.
He danced back and forth in the center of the floor rather than moving down
the line of dance along the outside.  The only time you see a woman walking
off the floor in the middle of a tanda is when she decides she can't suffer
any longer.

The women (all over 60) were conversing loudly enough in English that I
realized they were from the USA.  I approached the table to introduce myself
and was immediately asked where I was from.  I replied, Chicago.  Oh, we're
all from Chicago, with one New Yorker.   I asked if they knew about tandas
in milongas.  Yes, we do, but we arranged it this way so we will all get to
dance more.  Two of us had our first tango lesson today.   I had to ask, did
you go driving on the highway the day you received your learner's permit?
This is a milonga, not a practica.  The New Yorker told me she studied
classical ballet, and it's no problem for her.  She was the one in the
middle of the floor with her eyes closed.  She assured me there wouldn't be
any accidents.

The hostess returned from dancing and told me to leave.  She has been coming
to BsAs for the past eight years and organizes tours.  Her guests were not
ready to dance at any milonga, especially not on the crowded floor at
Gricel.  Why couldn't she arrange for a taxi dancer who knows how to dance?

The night wasn't a complete disaster.  Carlos Rey provided excellent music
as always, and I danced a tanda of Di Sarli with Osvaldo Centeno.


Janis Kenyon
Buenos Aires