Tango Nuevo is out of fashion now. The new trend is the competition tango in salon style. When this style first came out, it was refreshing. So, many people copy it. They all walk the same way, pause the same way, turn the same way, and move the same way—with elegant postures and refined footwork, but little originality and personality, like they all come out of the same mold. The following is an example.
I came
across some videos of Argentine folk dances, which, in comparison to the
sterile type of the modern tango, I found fresh and original. We can see
connections between these folk dances and tango. Unfortunately, the
contemporary tango is more and more stylized. I wish it retained more
of such originality, simplicity and freshness.
In the dances of
the old milongueros, we still find the same originality, simplicity and freshness. The milongueros do not
copy others because they don’t dance for impression, but for pleasure. In
fact they don’t care much about how they look. They just dance the feelings
within them. Every milonguero has his unique style, which may be raw, but never
boring.
Two videos from Beijing and Shanghi festivals show how tango is about copying and perfecting an Argentine couples' style and then going to competition to win a title. I don't have to check their resumes to know their teachers; it's obvious since they are such good copies.
ReplyDeleteDancers are forsaking originality for the look. There is no more originality among young dancers.