How I discovered Tango...
As a kid, I wanted to be a ballet dancer but my Mom just laughed at me and said,
- hey, look at yourself, look at your ears. They are sticking out. You can never be a ballerina with the ears like that.But all I really loved was dancing. Despite the ears. I got hooked on partner dancing. Competitions. Team performances. There was only one problem - you needed a partner. There was also a second problem
- you needed a good partner. Then something amazing happened...One day I got invited to the Argentine Tango class. I told them I knew nothing about tango and they reassured me, "that's ok
- you just follow. "The 'just follow' experience was quite unique. Let me tell you why.I was used to the classes and instructors giving ladies steps, then gentleman steps, repeating it many times and eventually trying to do it together on the teacher's count. If someone missed the class, they were lost. That's why looking for a partner was such a daunting task. But Tango was different. It was based on improvisation and communication. I had never taken a single Tango lesson before
- yet I was dancing. Nobody was counting! Yet, my partner and I both floated to the music.At first, I thought
- oh wow, this guy is really good. I did not want to change partners, but eventually, I had to. And to my surprise, the next leader was just as good as the previous one.The embrace was also different. Instead of a stiff ballroom frame
- we were hugging. Embracing each other and moving in unison like we knew each other and had been dancing with each other for years. I was in love!
That was the beginning...And now, I get to share my love of tango with students around the Boston area and far beyond through our online offerings. Tell me in the comments...How did YOU discover tango?