[Tango-L] communites of all gender leading

[Lois Donnay]

Keith (HK) - I don't doubt that you believe that this can destroy your 
feeling and enjoyment of the milonga, and I truly believe that when you 
dance in a milonga, you dance with everyone on the floor, not just your 
partner. What happens around you can upset your dance, and therefore your 
partner.

But please don't say that a dance with a same-sex partner is "showing 
off-pure and simple"  or has "absolutely no feeling involved"  I have had 
wonderful dances when I am led by other women. Women and men ask me, a 
woman, to lead them because they like to dance with me.  Partly because 
women aren't inclined to show off, but just give their partner a good dance.

Of course, this may not be good news for some men, especially those who 
don't dance well, or like showing off more than giving the woman a good 
dance.

I am reminded of an incident several years ago when a guy asked me why women 
liked to dance with me. I said "I'll show you-let's dance." He hesitated, I 
encouraged, - he said ok. After the dance he paused for a few moments, then 
said "Let's do it again!"

It will be a wonderful day when we can make choices without regard to 
society's restraints and judgements. Where would tango be without that?

Sharing a tango with a good friend have absolutely no feeling? What kind of 
feelings are you looking for???

Loisa

> Encouraging students to switch roles during classes and practice is a good 
> thing because it aids the process of learning Tango. It can
> also be entertaining in a Tango Show - especially if the couple are 
> skilful.
>
> Having said that, switching roles in a milonga is a totally different 
> thing and should not be encouraged. I'll come out flat and say it -
> In a milonga, unless the couple are gay, I hate to see men dancing with 
> men and women dancing with women. Why? Because it destroys the
> whole feeling of the dance and can destroy the feeling and enjoyment of 
> the milonga. We all say that Tango is about 'feeling' as well as
> technique and I certainly agree with that. But same-sex dancing is 100% 
> about technique, with absolutely no feeling involved - unless the
> couple are gay and, as I've said, in that case I have no objection. La 
> Marshall was very enjoyable.
>
> Another thing - we all rail against showing off in milongas. Don't we all 
> hate that? Or at least we say we do. But let's be clear - most
> people who switch roles during a molonga are showing off - pure and 
> simple. The man is showing off that he can follow, the woman is
> showing off that she can lead. What they're saying is ... "look at us, 
> look how clever we are". And they do it selfishly, with a complete
> disregard for all the other dancers present.
>
> Many people, including Igor in a recent post, have a misconception that 
> there's a tradition in Argentina of men dancing with men. This
> just isn't true. Men practice with men, they don't dance together. When I 
> see same-sex dancing in BsAs, I always think the same thing -
> "look at the stupid tourists".
>
> Keith, HK
>
>
>
>
> On Thu Sep 13  1:47 , jackie ling wong  sent:
>
>>daniel trenner lives in northampton ma and his students are
>>definitely encouraged to switch roles from day one. i also encourage
>>students locally to switch and experiment.  it's easier for both
>>danny and i because the two of us teach in colleges... amherst, mt
>>holyoke, bard, williams college... personally, i find that younger
>>students are more open to switching roles.
>>
>>i always lead at milongas and have been known to lead at milongas in
>>buenos aires.  porteno y bailerin, la viruta, la marshall and
>>milongas that la vikinga hosts are generally open to "alternative"
>>pairing.  i heard recently that the milonga that uses the same space
>>as la marshall on another night, asks a woman who was leading and
>>another that was wearing sneakers to leave.  please note that i'm
>>passing on information which i didn't witness.
>>
>>jackie
>>www.tangopulse.net
>>
>>
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>
>
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