A Lesson in Tango Fusion

Tango is one of the true treasures of Buenos Aires and it's everywhere you turn. The other night we decided to try a "tango fusion" show, which purported to meld pure tango music and steps with modern dance and original compositions. The show was called Quintaesencia and performed by a new company under the direction of Leonardo Cuello. We had never been to the Centro Cultural Borges so we decided to give it a shot. From the start we were taken aback by the sophistication and skill of the dance moves. It really opened our eyes to the difference between a professional dance company and watching a dinner and tango show at the other places we've been. The show is divided into four short works that are the result of three years of development. We even recognized one of the dancers from a previous show we had seen and the choreography just made her appear more advanced by lightyears. It was fantastic and cost us about a quarter of the price of some fancy place.

Not to mention, the photography displays in the Cultural Center were excellent. There was one showcase on daily life in India that was full of vibrant colors and candid portrait shots. Another captured the faces and places of people going through abuse recovery, mental hospitalization, and illnesses. It sounds depressing but the photographs spoke volumes.

Here's Don posing outside the auditorium:

Happy New Year!

It's 2009! Don and I brought in the new year with a few friends and we are so happy to have Butch visiting from DC. He's been our Buenos Aires companion for the past week and we've been wining, dining, and dancing all over. One of the best parts about having a visitor is that you get a great excuse to make reservations at all of your favorite restaurants and so far they have not disappointed. Last night we were at the Faeno Hotel dinner and tango show because you just can't come down here and not see a tango show. So that's one major thing checked off the list but now we're on to shopping for leather and visiting Tigre in the north to sail through the Delta...

Here are Butch and Don at Asia de Cuba in Puerto Madero having a nice relaxing Sunday afternoon:
The boys leaving brunch at Olsen's:

Anniversary Tango Show

December 9th was our 3-year wedding anniversary and we decided to celebrate with a romantic tango show in San Telmo. We went to a place called La Ventana inside a historic, refurbished building and it was very charming. The evening started out with a gourmet 3-course dinner and we were seated right at the front edge of the stage with a good view. When the show started we immediately loved the band of musicians playing the piano, cello, violins, and bandoneon (which we always thought was an accordion). The dancers were all pretty exceptional, too. It was more of a traditional style tango show than we we had seen at the Faena and we couldn't help but compare things. But, in the end, the styles of the two shows just represented different interpretations and we enjoyed ourselves just as much if not more. We captured some video of the dancing:

Overall, however, the star highlight of the La Ventana show was not really the tango dancing or singing but rather the two artists representing northwest Argentine folk music and dance. Don was most impressed with the guitar player and I really liked the guy who played the Argentine drum or Bombo leguero. We hope to post videos of those acts elsewhere on the blog. It was a fantastic night and we definitely need to make our way over to San Telmo more often. Maybe this Sunday for more tango and shopping...