[Tango-L] Serpentine youth in Zagreb..look out!

[Trini y Sean (PATangoS)]

--- On Wed, 11/19/08, Myk Dowling <politas at gmail.com> wrote:

Argentine Tango is a social dance, with no ruling body to define and 
control it. As such, it is free to adapt to changing preferences of the 
people who dance it. 

-----

That’s an excuse, not a reason.  There’s a difference.  Good posture is Tango 101.  If there is some physical defect that makes it impossible for them to hold their heads and shoulders up, then that would be a reason.  It wouldn’t make the presentation any more elegant, but it mitigates the outcome of the performance.

I do hold couples doing a FORMAL PRESENTATION to a higher level of tango than I would for others simply dancing at a milonga.  Presentations should be measured by their OUTCOME, not their output.   Read Mario’s post again.  His first reaction is along the lines of “What the h…?”  This is outcome.  This presentation failed in that regard.  It also failed with me.  Think of demos as a job interview.  You wouldn’t dress in sweats because it would detract from your message.  Same thing here, only the poor posture is what is detracting from the message of the artists.

Presentations can leave a significant impression on its audience, particularly beginners.  As a long-time organizer I’m aware of the impact they can have weeks, months, or even years down the road.  I believe that organizers have a responsibility to present tango in a good way, not just anyway old way.  If there is very little tango in Zagreb and this was a young community, then I can understand why the host was gushing over this couple.  

This couple is obviously talented but they would be better served by being told the truth rather than being coddled.  If they paid more attention to basics like posture and looking elegant, then this couple would really be something.

Trini de Pittsburgh