On 21 March, under the heading 'Alberto Dassieu', I posted some dreams of a London tango festival. I called it the first London tango festival because it would be the first festival of the traditional tango of Buenos Aires. I'd been frustrated in efforts to arrange a visit to London for Tete and Silvia on their tour of Europe this spring; one London organiser was very sympathetic, but told me 'It's not the kind of tango people want here'. &, to be fair, it was rather short notice. I started to notice how many traditional teachers visit Europe regularly – but never England. True, they are no longer young and perhaps never were acrobatic or glamorous, but they each have 50-odd years experience of tango!
It was only a wishful dream, so I was very gratified that it interested several people. Many thanks, Sabailar and MsH, for your enthusiasm and kind comments. I thought it would be a good idea to repeat the original post under this heading, and to dig out the main comments from the bottom of a long list and put them alongside, so we know where we are. I've added some (I hope) more practical thoughts at the end.
If anyone else is interested, has any ideas or suggestions, please post comments, or email me. Something on this scale would be difficult without a lot of money, but if there is interest we might be able to manage something smaller.
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“I'm planning the first London Tango Festival. The star attraction won't be the choreographer of a Broadway show, but probably Tete and his partner Silvia. We'll have, I hope, Facundo and Kely, and Dany 'El Flaco' Garcia with Silvina Vals, to teach milonga. We'll invite Ana Schapira and her partner; we'll invite Myriam Pincen and Alicia Pons, Rubén de Pompeya and Miguel Balbi. And Alberto Dassieu and his wife Paulina Spinoso. Those are the main stars: there will be others. We'll invite a few orchestras, take over Wild Court for two weeks, have endless workshops and milongas, and perhaps readjust London tango. All we need now is about £30,000.”
Sabailar said...
I ... would love your festival idea to become reality. What a joy it would be to attend and to think of the effect it could have on the London tango scene.
Everyone talks about how London isn't ready for this and all we want is flashy show tango, but surely it isn't just me who got over being impressed and now finds this a little boring and disappointing. I know it isn't just me.
I find the fact that Amanda and Adrian Costa's classes are so well attended when they are here encouraging - surely this shows that we do want basic technique and floor craft.
So if you need cheering on to keep the idea alive, I'm cheering. And happy to help if it comes to it.
msHedgehog said...
I think your dream is beautiful, and Sabailar is correct. That's why I think it's worthwhile to make attempts to raise expectations. And also why I asked the question - because money and lawyers are to be had for such things if there's a feasible business plan. (I've already been asked to volunteer for a festival later this year and I got the impression that the idea was along the same lines as yours, but I don't remember the details and I think it was at an early stage).
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Some random thoughts: I like the idea of 'a festival' (as against 'several teachers visiting in a short time') as it gives a bit of focus for publicity, if nothing else. Getting two couples here for five or six days each, for programmes of workshops, and preferably without too much of a break between the visits. The programme for Tete and Silvia in Paris is just coming in: five days, two workshops a day, with a long supervised practica on Saturday afternoon and a closing milonga with a demonstration on Monday evening.
April – May is when the annual migration starts. This year between April and May Tete and Silvia are teaching in Italy, France and Germany, and Alberto Dassieu is in Switzerland in May. If we'd started this nine months ago, we might have been able to get them all in London around the same time.
The costs might not be prohibitive if the trips to the UK are included in a wider tour and if accommodation can be arranged with friends. I've no experience of this, but I gather it usually can be. A venue for workshops is necessary. With sufficient advanced notice, classes and demos can also be arranged at the regular venues.
Problems like other big local tango events can be avoided. Visits by the likes of Pablo Veron and Miguel Zotto are more difficult, as they seem to arrive at a moment's notice and claim everyone's attention. Legal problems (immigration, work permits) are serious but I'm told they can be dealt with. I'd assume that a one-off consultation with an expert in the field would be necessary, but that once the system is understood it would not be a recurring cost. But that might be wishful thinking too.
4 comments:
I recently took some (5) workshops from Rubén de Pompeya and Enriqueta Klienman - worth every penny and all my aching mucsles! They are currently on a N. American Tour. I also highly recommend Alicia Pons. She is an amazing teacher. I dance regularly with someone who took an intesnive weekend workshop with her, and his dancing and quality of movement was trasnformed as a result. Perhaps we could do an exchange - we can send Alicia and Ruben to London and you folks can send Adrian and Amanada to Canada. Enjoy your blog.
Well, it may not be what you envisioned, but we do have a London Tango Festival called Tango Extravaganza UK. It is flashy. I don't think that it is because of what people necessarily want, but because of what is on offer and what the organisers can afford. They don't even break even. You should talk to them and find out what it takes to organise something like this. We have had some wonderful and traditional teachers in the UK. But not all at the same time. The cost is prohibitive. Carablanca tend to have traditional teachers over here. Adrian and Amanda are great because they are young, and traditional and they can easily move around Europe.
Good luck with your idea.
Thanks, Londontango, and thanks for your good wishes. Yes I am aware of the Extravaganza: it's what I had in mind when I thought of organising a tango festival headlined not by the choreographer of a Broadway show, but by a dancer whose memory and practice of tango goes back to the 'golden age'. My interest is specifically in that generation, in the people who grew up dancing to Troilo, D'Arienzo, Pugliese. Sad to say, they won't be around much longer. And, even sadder, they get invited year after year to cities all over Europe to give workshops and classes, and we don't even know their names in this country. The last dancer of this generation I remember in London was Ricardo Maceiras, who gave workshops at Negracha a year or so ago. & before that... Ricardo Maceiras at Negracha, maybe two years ago. & three or four years ago, Ricardo Vidort was here. I don't think I've missed anyone out.
I'm a bit bemused by some of the reaction to my 'plan': I thought that by saying that it's what I'd do if I had £30,000 to spare made its status clear! Given that even the names of these dancers aren't known here, even I wouldn't wouldn't seriously try to invite eight or ten couples - and several orchestras - over. Perhaps I'm good at writing fiction. But if it starts people talking and thinking, great! I look forward to hearing, at a milonga soon, that someone (we don't know who) is planning this massive traditional tango festival! At present I'd be more than happy to get a single couple over for five days of workshops. & in the meantime, sadly, (well, not so sadly) plan another visit to Buenos Aires.
& thanks, too, Zabetango. I look forward to meeting Ruben, and to aching muscles! I'd love to see Alicia and Ruben (and all the others) over here.
... and the Disparis! Apologies to Alexandra and Stefano, who have invited them several times over the past few years.
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