Your partner can be a world-famous show (or even salon) tango instructor, or the most skilled follower in the local tango community, but she would still not come close to what dancing with a milonguera like Elba (or Susy Tilbe – Man Yung had a chance to dance with her on the first day of our first visit to Buenos Aires) feels like. “Milonguera” seems to be a state of mind that could be transmitted to the leader when the milonguera follows. It is a deep feeling, which also feels like complete freedom. You don’t have to worry about whether your partner can follow or not follow, or whether something would be “too tricky” or “too plain” or “too easy” or “too difficult”. The milonguera dances to enjoy the dance, she is not anxious about being able to follow everything that the leader is trying to do (even though she can, and she does), nor does she care. It was as if Elba had given Man Yung the order to “dance, dance!” and that was all he needed to do – to dance.
via Irene and Man Yung’s Tango Blog: Buenos Aires 2008 – Part 4.
Filed under: following
Beyond the surface of tango 