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Tango San Francisco
- Teo Bartek

San Francisco Has Many Experienced Tango Dancers and Teachers

My wife Marsha and I recently vacationed in San Francisco for a week, taking in all the sights and sounds including an incredible Tango community. Tango is 12 years old in San Francisco, and it seems to be firmly entrenched, with many excellent Tango dancers and teachers. You can find a well-attended Milonga to go to every night of the week.

We arrived Friday evening and started off with a group class and Milonga from 7:30pm to 12:00pm at the Metronome Ballroom at 300 DeHaro St., led by Ken Delmar. The class was small, about 15 people. I was surprised to find that men outnumbered women I the class by about 2 to 1. In other group classes I attended subsequently in San Francisco men also outnumbered women, but not by such a large margin. When the Milonga began at 9:15, a few more women, mostly experienced dancers appeared. The class and Milonga cost $12. Entrance to the Milonga alone cost $8. This was a nice introduction to Tango in San Francisco, but I wouldn't do it again on a future trip because the room was small, there was little ambiance and the Milonga was poorly attended. On our next trip we plan to check out a Friday Milonga given by Nirmala and Gary at the Monte Cristo Club, at 136 Missouri Street. This sounds more exciting. Perhaps more of the Tango regulars frequent this Milonga.

The next night, Marsha, well-rested, and excited to get on the dance floor accompanied me to Planet Tango's group Class and Milonga held the fourth Saturday of each month at an atmospheric, Victorian-style, high-ceiling ballroom at 449 Powell St. in the exciting Union Square area of town. Alberto Paz and Valerie Hart are the organizers of the event. The best tango dancers in town assembled for this electrifying event. The women looked stylish and sophisticated, dressed in beautiful evening wear suitable for Tango. The men for the most part dressed elegantly to match. The ages of the Tangueros ranged from early 20's to 60's, with many people in there 30's and 40's. The average age was about 35. The dancing was done superbly in a Milonguero-style because of the large number of couples navigating this small space.

Alberto and Valerie are very good teachers and I found it easy to learn from them. They both teach from their hearts, giving you the feeling they really care about you as a person. They made us feel very welcome. Later in the week we took some private lessons from them at the Allegro Ballroom in Emeryville, a 25 minute drive northeast of San Francisco across the Bay Bridge. They teach you the basic building blocks you can use to create your own improvisational Tango style. We look forward to spending more time with them in group classes and private lessons with them when they visit Tampa and Sarasota in January 22, 23, and 14. Call Nicole Gagnon for details on their upcoming workshop.

The day after the Planet Tango Milonga, Sunday, we woke up feeling the warm glow of a wonderful night of Tango. And to continue that glow we bought 2pm matinee tickets to a new exciting Tango show from Buenos Aires, named "Tango". This Show featured some of the stars of previous tango shows such as Tango X2 and Forever Tango. Anyone who participated in this year's Tango Congress remembers the young couple, Gachi and Sergio. In Tango they mesmerized the audience with the feeling of the Tango expressed so potently through their elegance, grace and flawless precision. And many Tangueros from Tampa and Sarasota remember Guillermo and Fernanda who taught a workshop in Tampa last Spring. Their sensual and electrifying Tango was a joy to behold. Everyone in the audience was very excited and moved by the performances of all the professional dancers in "Tango" which included, Claudio and Valentina, who also appeared in Tango Forever, Nelson and Yanina, and Juan and Edit. There is a wealth of talent in this show! See it if you can.

After the show we met Sergio and Gachi and had dinner with them. They are very warm, sincere and genuine people with an air of fun and light-heartedness. We enjoyed their company so much so, that we asked them to accompany us on a day trip to the Napa Valley wine country the next day. They accepted and brought another couple, their close friends Claudio and Valentina. And the six of us packed into our Grand Am rental car the trip. We had a grand time despite the constant downpour, which continued all day.

Sunday we attended a third Milonga at the Broadway Studios at 435 Broadway. We arrived early for a group lesson from 8pm to 9pm taught by Juan Miller Ramil. Again there were more men than women. But after the class the 50' x 50' round shaped room quickly filled with 100+ tangueros and tangueras. The cost was $5 for the class and $5 for the Milonga. We danced to our heart's content and also spent time watching the ongoing spectacle of couple after couple gliding effortlessly and very sensually around the floor transfixed in the spell of the Tango serenade. What a feast for the eyes, the ears, and the heart! I thought to myself, "It doesn't get much better than this."

But I was mistaken. Alberto and Valerie told us about a very special Milonga taking place the following night, Monday, in San Francisco. Every Monday night Alberto and Valerie teach a group class from 7:30pm to 8:30pm, followed by a Milonga at the "Top of the Top" of the elegant Mark Hopkins Hotel on top of Nob Hill in San Francisco. The "Top of the Top" is and beautiful oval penthouse dance club reminiscent of a 1940's cabaret located on the 19th floor of the hotel. The room has a panoramic view of the city below and music for the evening is provided by live band "Strictly Tango". Some of the finest Tango dancers in town come out for this affair.

The Monday night we were there was very special because about 2/3 of the cast of the show "Tango" were there, Gachi, Sergio, Claudio, Valentina, Guillermo, Manuel, Edit, plus a singer, some musicians, and the producer of the show. We danced with the stars and immensely enjoyed watching the stars dance with each other in this exquisite setting. It truly doesn't get much better than the "Top of the Top". All this including the group class for a cover charge of $6!

The "Top of the Top" was indeed the highpoint of our trip, but it wasn't the end of the delightful surprises San Francisco has to offer tango aficionados.

The next night, Tuesday, we took a short 15 minute drive to the Valencia Heights section of San Francisco to a quaint little tapas bar named El Valenciano. This warm and friendy club had a 20' x 40' dance floor which was adequate to handle the 50 or so die hard Tangueros who came out for the 9pm to 12am Milonga. The cost was $5, $10 if you came early for the group class given by Juan Miller Ramil and Claudia. Again the spirit of the tango flourished and soared in the dancers as the music sounded the relentless rhythm of the bandoneon. Another magical evening in the Tango Capital of the U.S.

On Wednesday a Milonga De Mis Amores took place from 8pm to 11:30pm at the Italian American Club at 25 Russia Street, about a mile from El Valenciano, which was hosted by Itati and Emilio Flores. The cost was $7. But we missed it because we wanted to see the show Tango once again before we left for home. The show the second time around was as captivating as the first. The tango dancers in the cast put their heart and soul into every single performance. And it clearly showed in this performance! After the show we went out for pizza with some of the members of the cast. Again they were as charming and warmhearted as before and made us feel very welcome in their lives. Sergio and Gachi invited us to stay with them whenever we visit Buenos Aires, which we hope to do soon.

Thursday night offered yet another Milonga at the Mariposa Tango Club at 2424 Mariposa Street, preceded by a group class led by Christy Cote. The cost $14 for the class and Milonga, and $10 for the 8:30-12pm party alone. We passed on it because we had an early flight to catch the next day.

I have only described the tango events taking place in San Francisco. But Tango is flourishing throughout the entire Bay Area as well with Milongas in Palo Alto, Los Altos, Sonoma, El Cerrito, Mountain View, Fairfax and other locations. If you're traveling to the area check the webpage which lists all the Tango events in the Bay Area at http;//bdsweb.ballroom.com.

We certainly look forward to visiting San Francisco again very soon. It has given us a glimpse of the future of Tango in Florida in the coming years. It was very encouraging.