Tango in Cape Town
  • Home
  • Tango Lessons and Events
    • Beginners Programme
    • Advanced lessons
    • Lesson review
    • Wedding Tango Dance
    • Tango Heart @ Temenos
    • It Takes Teams to Tango >
      • Milonga Africana >
        • Cape Town Tango Ensemble
  • Contact
  • Blog
  • What is Argentine Tango?
    • Social Dancing
    • Tango Documentary
    • Buenos Aires... where it all began
    • Argentine Tango Styles
    • Argentine Tango Music from the Golden Age
    • Media
    • Upcoming Socials
    • Code of Conduct
  • Reviews
    • Why choose Libertango?

Tango Heart: Inviting Mindfulness and Empathy to the Dance

11/3/2017

0 Comments

 
Picture
Picture
On the weekend I co-facilitated the second tango retreat at Temenos with fellow dancer, Lizelle Steyn.

In the gentle surrounds of the Temenos gardens, with  male peacocks aplomb in mating season, we explored some of the  personal  teachings inherent in the Argentine tango, while learning to improvise movement with  a partner.

Like many interactions ,the tango  offers a mirror to understand our relationships with others, and can help us to identify blockages in our relating in order to  facilitate change.   Key features in our communication are   the ability to empathize, reach into ourselves to practice compassion and very importantly, to be in our own balance. Many of us know that   our own psychological balance provides clarity of thought and emotional security  to enable  us to connect with others generously and fairly. When  we are not "in our own axis" as we say in the tango,  we   may react too quickly, too harshly and self-protectively. Unfortunately we can rarely press 'rewind'.

Another beautiful gift of tango is the need to be totally present in order to dance. It is not possible to dance while we plan, strategize,  or judge  . It simply does not work. The tango demands our presence on a moment to moment basis .  As a follower, I find  that I quickly lose  understanding and may even trip over a foot or two if I lose my  mindful connection with my partner. As a leader, my  own interpretation of the  music and my desire to  shape the dance can become brutal if I am not finely attuned to,  and accommodate my follower's interpretation of my lead. And as leaders and followers, presence also means that our bodies should be made available to connect, finding just the right amount of tension to enable give and take, not too much and not too little. In tango, we physically embody an 'intention ' to connect.

If all this sounds like a lesson in vulnerability, it is! We do make ourselves vulnerable when we embark on the tango adventure. As a dancer of many years, I have observed   how   we as dancers respond to this vulnerability .   Many people form a protective shell, hardening around their  ego needs "I love dancing, but it's my way or the highway! YOU are a tool for my art!" or "Let me show you how its done (wink wink)". In this sense, the need to connect  is not separated from the need to fuel the ego, dominate or judge. But there are also many people who  embrace the transformative potential of the tango and  have become  closer to the person they want to be  - present, authentic, compassionate. The mirror   that we put up to ourselves when we dance the tango provides this potential.

Personally, I will always find tango a challenge. For me , listening  while not judging is difficult. My brain is in analytic mode   most of  time.   In the tango there   can be no agenda for the leader or follower. We co-create   something beautiful and   most importantly connected.   I am so happy that  I dance!
0 Comments

    Author

    Rachael Glaser: tango junkie, teacher, diva, sourceress

    Archives

    October 2018
    August 2018
    May 2018
    April 2018
    January 2018
    November 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    March 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    August 2015
    April 2015
    November 2014
    May 2014
    February 2014
    January 2014
    December 2013
    October 2013
    September 2013
    July 2013
    June 2013
    May 2013
    March 2013
    February 2013
    December 2012
    November 2012
    October 2012
    September 2012
    August 2012
    July 2012
    May 2012
    April 2012
    March 2012
    February 2012
    January 2012
    December 2011
    November 2011
    September 2011
    August 2011
    July 2011
    June 2011

    Categories

    All
    Buenos Aires
    Discussion On Argentine Tango
    Interviews
    Lessons
    Milonga
    News
    Peformance
    Performance
    Prakticas
    Tango Technique
    Videos Of Tango Performances
    Viisiting Teachers
    Viisiting Teachers
    Visiting Teachers

    RSS Feed