A Lesson, and a Greater Love for Tango

It was that time of year, and like the giant advertisements state, August is all about Tango.  I enjoy all the events that accompany the Tango festival, but my favourite has to be the competition.  Unfortunately, tickets to the semi-final and finals were sold old quickly, meaning I was only able to go to a qualifying round.

This year, the event was held in La Trastienda, as opposed to La Rural.  As I approached La Trastienda, I noticed a short line.  When I saw the competition at La Rural, there was space for everyone, and not only were there no lines, there was plenty of seating with an excellent view of the dancers.  I was only behind 5 people, yet waited in line for nearly 40 minutes.  Once I finally got in, I entered a room totally packed, nowhere to sit and impossible to have a good view of the stage.

I must say I was put off, and wondered why they had moved it.  Luckily, this quickly became apparent.  The very first couple I saw was a Japanese couple, and they put on an electrifying performance…the crowd went wild, and I could feel a chill running up my spine.  The performance by the Japanese was followed by an equally stellar performance by a Columbian couple, and again the crowd was loud with their appreciation.  Here I was, seeing the best of the best in Tango, and sharing this appreciation with a few hundred others.

No, I was not as comfortable as when I saw the competition at La Rural.  But the Rural lacked life….it was too big, and in the same way that a half empty sports arena makes for boring games, it was a similar outcome at La Rural.  Not to mention the sounds at La Rural was horrible, and it was quite good in La Trastienda.

As I left La Trastienda with a greater love for both Tango and Buenos Aires, I decided to hold back my judgements until after an event.  This is no new lesson for anyone, but something I was happy to have been reminded.