A Conversation about Tango

15 Oct 2024 - by Graham (from Newsletter)

The very public meltdown of Gustavo Naveira recently at the Gavito Tango Festival in Los Angeles has got the whole dance world in a buzz. Two weeks ago, had you Googled “Naveira tango” you would have seen page after page of discussion about his contributions to tango and his essay on Nuevo Tango published in 2009. Now that same Google search will return videos of him arguing with his partner Giselle Anne on stage and attempting to humiliate her by walking away during a performance piece in front of a paying festival audience.

Thousands of words have already been written about the incident, and no doubt there will be thousands more before the dust settles. But what this has also done is to open the doors to a discussion about respect in dance and how we should behave on the dance floor.

On the Dance Floor

Tango is often described as a lead-follow dance, but those of you who have come to my classes will know that I prefer to describe it as a ‘conversation’. The leader suggests, and the follower responds, but at no time does the leader ever get to insist that the follower does something a certain way. For sure there can be assumptions, but it takes two to tango and either partner can – and frequently does – contribute to misunderstandings. As a result, if a move is attempted and something goes awry it is rare that it is entirely one person’s fault.

In a social dance context, the way this shows up is often when leaders (and yes, unfortunately it is usually male leaders) start telling-off or lecturing their dance partner at a social dance about why they did something wrong, and why the follower “isn’t following the lead”.

It goes without saying that this should never happen, but unfortunately it does happen and far too often. Speak to any follower and it is likely that they will tell you about at least one incident where they have been told they “got it wrong” at a social dance, and usually by a partner they barely know.

So leaders – and a few followers – please remember these helpful tips:

• When a lead is not followed as expected, it is unlikely to be just the follower’s fault. The follower may not have encountered that technique before; there may be contributing factors, such as a sticky floor or other dancers nearby; or – and I know this could be hard to accept – it may just have been led very very badly.
• Social dances are supposed to be fun. They are not a teaching environment, and no-one comes there expecting to be corrected or adjusted. So regardless of whether or not you are a trained dance teacher, keep your advice to somewhere where people actually want it.
• Dance floors are public places, and are especially so at tango venues where the music is often played at a lower volume than other dance styles. If you are having a go at your partner then other people will hear everything you say. Imagine how that will make your partner feel.

We go to tango socials because they are fun. Let’s make sure we keep them that way.