Community Tango
1st Monday of the month: Tango Group Class & Social Night with supper, 7.30 – 9.30pm. Usual Charge $3.
3rd Wednesday of each month: Supervised Practica 8-9.30pm – practice steps & floorcraft in a relaxed environment with teacher help available. $3.
Ocassional Milongas & Special Events.
Venue: Christ Church, corner of Moorabool & McKillop Streets in Geelong. The $3 charge covers hall hire, and Richard and Pam donate their services.
Occasional workshops are planned with visiting professional teachers (who will be paid appropriate fees), and we hope to host occasional tango events in Geelong for Australia’s dancers, as the group develops. Information: richardandpam@mac.com or telephone: 0417 531 619
Special events:
TANGO POETICA - Saturday 19 November 2011
Melbourne dancers are invited to share a pioneering tango event, a first for Australia: TANGO POETICA, hosted by Community Tango in Geelong on Saturday 19 November 2011, 6 - 10pm, in a newly emerging arts precinct near the river. The night brings together tango arts of dance, music, poetry and painting.
Taking inspiration from winning entries of the Australian Tango Poetry Competition by Melbourne writer-dancer Tamara Tallent and Surf Coast writer-dancer Julie Maclean, four young choreographers from Adelaide and Perth have created original new tango and contemporary dance works that will be premiered as part of TANGO POETICA. The Southern Cross Tango student performance ensemble is also coming to dance.
Arrive at 8 Rutland Street, Newtown at 6 pm for refreshments, then take a short walk to the space in the old mill building at 405 Pakington Street where the premiere of the new dance works will be presented at 6.30pm. Afterwards, retrace your steps to the tango party space in Rutland Street for social dancing, food and drinks. Added treats will be tango-inspired paintings, a short recital from a classically trained singer Yvonne Williams now embracing tango, and a demo from a loved traditional porteno, Eddie Leoni, traversing new tango territory with Piazzolla and Averil Nichol.
Admission for the night is a $20 donation, with proceeds going to the Friends of Buenos Aires at the Beach Inc, a not-for-profit volunteer group that supports tango arts and artists and introduces tango to new audiences through community events. To book, email richardandpam@mac.com or telephone Pam on 041 753 1619
Tango Elegance Workshop - Open level tango workshop, 2-3.30pm with visiting performance artists, Adrienne & Andrew Gill at Christchurch Hall, Geelong. $12. Bookings 0417 531 619.
ABOUT COMMUNITY TANGO IN GEELONG
Community Tango in Geelong was launched in November 2009 at a Beautiful Afternoon Tango Tea that, with generous sponsorship from the Friends of Buenos Aires at the Beach Incorporated, raised over $1,000 for charity.
Christ Church was chosen as the venue because the parish hall is a community centre that has provided people in need with free, nourishing meals, daily, for more than 20 years. It seemed like the right place to bring together a different kind of tango community – an open and supportive circle that welcomes newcomers, provides a viable alternative form of healthy, affordable exercise, entertainment and social activity in Geelong, and gives people of all ages and backgrounds an opportunity to come together to enjoy tango.
Southern Cross Tango stepped in to help, taking on this new group as a community outreach arm. Pam & Richard Jarvis, long-standing supporters and dancers of Argentine tango in Melbourne and Adelaide, now resident in Geelong, see it as a way they, too, can contribute something to tango.
They launched the first monthly Community Tango get-together in February 2010. They envisioned a practica format, but when 30 aspiring dancers turned up (with no tango experience), they realized that classes were called for. They have settled on a format that offers simple, basic instruction, lots of encouragement and opportunity to practise with experienced dancers (some of whom come from Melbourne and Canberra to help). The format is working; numbers are growing steadily. They want people to experience success, have fun, and feel confident to take to the floor at any milonga. They offer supper and espresso coffee too. Visiting experienced dancers are warmly welcomed.