Tango Por Dos
Slit-to-the-thigh skirts and killer heels, fedoras and suits sharp as flick knives - sensuality, passion and betrayal mingling like aromas on the Beunos Aires water front. Its hot. No, its not hot, its HOT!. It's sexy. Its the Tango!
"Perfumes de Tango" brings to vibrant life the sultry atmosphere of the Tango city. Four glamorous couples, led by Miguel Angel Zotto and Milena Plebs, singing star Roxana Fontan and a seven-piece tango orchestra combine to create an atmosphere of overwhelming erotic energy. This is an experience in dance seduction. Moist? You should be!
Last night I attended the Sadlers Wells production of "Perfumes de Tango". I was in the best seats in the house - right up the front, where you can see the girls knickers. Look, a flash of navy-blue knickers at the age of four, makes a permanent impression on a guy. Back to the plot. Here torrid encounters mingle with innocent romanticism as the pulse is set throbbing by the panarama of moods. Legs flick like darting tongues, as they stalk.
Did I mention that angorra sweaters do it for me, as well?
If you haven't seen real Tango, do. Much of the dance is performed with heads together, whilst in an intimate embrace, Legs and arms constantly coiling around each other. Tango is a traditional dance, never requiring to enter a period of revival. The men and women's moves are not as dissimilar to each other as other Latin dance. Some of the dances were performed only by men, in lines, sometimes breaking into circles, not unlike Cotswold sets. The dancers often grasp their partner by the waist, turning into tight spins, not unlike some Border dances. Sometimes the dancers grasp their partner firmly by the buttocks, not unlike Vancouver Morris Men when they've had a few beers.
Fortunately, Tango has not been affected like other Latin dances by a move towards gymnastics in competition. It remains a dance of sincere passion. Rudolph Valentino did well by it. The Tango that is often parodied, of the couple, cheek-to-cheek surging forward and performing sexy jerky movements, is only partly complete. A move that is always missed out is the very dominant single leg flick. It is like an Upton-upon-Severn leg-flick, but is directed to the side or back of the dancer. It is vigorous, fast and high. It usually is aimed a little below the partner's crotch, and rarely to that of a dancer in an adjacent couple. As the kicking dancer is always looking away, it is a step of great precision, and makes the audience realise that the dancers are constantly aware of the position of their partner's feet. The flashing long stilletoe heel below the man's happy-sacks takes the audience's breath away. Another centimetre higher and the man would be breathless too.
Perfumes de Tango expresses the true essence of Tango - sensuality, passion, death and betrayal. The stage is cemented together in games of seduction, where Basic Instincts become Fatal Attractions.