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Whilst heavy snow seals off Scotland ,
Wales , Northern Ireland , Lancashire ,
Cumbria , West Yorkshire and
the Pennines, we set off from Darlington for Oxford
– successfully skirting the snow falls
of South Yorkshire Oxford
city centre.
Calling via our guest
house, Sandfield we head for The Simpkins Lee Theatre where Leandro Diaz (guitarra) and
Mauro Mauceri (bandoneon) - Cosae
Mandinga are to open the show. In truth, Cosae Mandinga are more than a
band – they are the scent of autumn Jacaranda and ripples of spring rain drops on a San Telmo
roof.
Miriam y Dante have given me a task – to introduce the
performers during this evening’s show. We arrive in the nick of time, catching
Dante peering out over the snow covered lawns. “You’re late”, he admonishes,
and leads me to the performers’ room. Here are tango dresses, bandoneons,
shoes, maté and that delicious Argentine chaos. Yanina lifts a leg in greeting,
and I turn to my task of learning names and the order of performance. Tonight
Miriam Orcutt and Dante Culcuy will start the show, followed by Marcelo Ramer
and Selva Mastroti, and finally Neri Piliu and Yanina Quiones.
The Simkins Lee Theatre
was intended for lectures, but tonight it is the dramatic setting for Oxford ’s top tango show.
Seating 160 guests, the raked theatre is still sufficiently intimate to provide
the closest connection between audience and performers. In centre stage are two
seats and one microphone – all that is needed by Cosea Mandinga. I momentarily
have the other microphone before the lights dim and the performance awakes with
Leandro y Mauro’s ‘Milonga triste’.
This is the real start to ‘Oxford Aires’, the new, unofficial name for
the festival – we feel the pulse of the Capital Federal – and the breath of a
breeze from La Boca to Palermo .
The dance performances have the skill of glittering professional
dancers, whilst capturing the connection of friends – ours and theirs. The
mid-show performance vignette from the students of Amarita Vargas adds an
Andalucian colour and change of rhythm, and then back to Argentine tango at its
darkest, and most vibrant.
Clutching our copies of Polenta by Cosea Mandinga, we leave
for the Deneke Hall, but 40 metres away across the square. Here DJ Punto y Branca is already
in full flow, with his seamless mix of tango, milonga y vals. We dance until
1.00 am, drag ourselves to a waiting taxi and return to a soft bed.
Saturday is the real day of action for the 2nd
Oxford Tango Festival, with an early morning master class led by Yanina y Neri
at 10.30 am, followed by beginner tango with Miriam y Dante. This year even Miriam’s
brother-in-law has been tempted to tango and starts what will almost certainly
be another fascinating tango journey. Marcelo y Selva deliver an intermediate
workshop before we retire again to the Deneke Hall for our ‘Just Like the Old
Times’ guided practica. For those not familiar with the concept, this is one of
the most energising events – tango learned on the floor of the milonga, with
ideas from each of the professionals, taking dance to greater heights – but
without the anxiety of formal tuition. We took from it what we could, at the
level we could access, and honed our skills across the floor.
Four more classes followed for leaders, followers,
intermediate and improvers.
And then the Saturday Grand Ball.
The Deneke Hall provides something special for a Grand Ball
– polished parquet flooring, oak panels and grand masters looking down on the
dancers. Here is DJ Punto y Branca, followed by live tango from Cosae Mandinga;
there the tangueras looking stunning in tango dresses and Comme il Fauts; with
black suited tangueros and fancy footwork.
But the Oxford Tango Festival Grand Ball is not just about
superb tango. It is about friendship, conversation – both danced and spoken –
and about fun. Tonight, with tables removed, there is no place for cliques, but
an open tango salon where tangueros from across Europe
meet to dance and to exchange experience. This is one of the most inclusive
places to ‘feel’ Argentine tango, and is the true realisation of 'Oxford Aires'.
After midnight, the tango performances. Miriam y Dante start
the night with a tango and vals – Miriam’s expressive, flawless, ethereal
delicacy - Dante’s mastery character and
humour. It has to end, but we do not want it to go. Our consolation is a
following performance by Marcelo y Selva. They take tango from the air, and
place it on the floor in a supremely exciting and totally connected performance
of tango and milonga. The contrast adds joy to both. Finally, we turn to Neri y
Yanina who dance tango with an expression that is, like a high altitude Malbec, infusing. But it is their
final milonga that lights the night. This was one of those rare occasions that
we experience perhaps once in a lifetime - where the
performance transcends anything we have encountered before, and with the lift
and excitement of the audience, moves far beyond that which was rehearsed. Here
is a memory in the making – to which we can look back and say... “I was there”.
After another busy day of classes and guided practica on
Sunday, tangueros gradually slip away to their distant homes, in France, Italy, Spain, USA and here in the UK. For us, a journey
of 230 miles back to County Durham – from fantasy to normality, but taking with
us the warm glow of friendship, companionship, and some fabulous dances.
Did you miss it? Well, if you are particularly good and book
early, there is always next year!
