After eleven years living, dancing, teaching tango, and writing in Buenos Aires, I came home to L.A. in 2014, where I'm reconstructing my life.

Wednesday, March 14, 2007

The Milagro Milonguero Bus




Apropos of taxi dancers, I have a crazy idea to make American tangueras happy, Argentine milongueros some spare change and a free vacation, and me rich.

I round up fifty of the best male dancers from the milongas in Buenos Aires, arrange for visas and buy them round-trip tickets to the United States, and make sure they have two sets of beautiful clothes and sufficient Italian cologne.

From Los Angeles we begin a cross-country bus tour to all the cities with tango communities, selling tickets in advance with lots of promotion and PR on the Internet. Our bus load of milongueros will play from Seattle to Atlanta to New York to Florida at special Milagro Milongas for which a maximum of 50 women must pay $50 each. Local men may attend free. Private lessons may be arranged separately.

Cheaper than a trip to Buenos Aires, yet American women can experience the thrill of the real thing, and perhaps American men might learn a thing or two. If the first tour is successful, we can go back for 50 different milongueros, and even go international. The best of both worlds.



7 comments:

Anonymous said...

Hi Cherie,

I would FOLLOW that micro! Seriously - even 20 good dancers would be a treat and certainly cheaper than my annual trip to BsAs. Ten of you have a place to stay in Central Florida. See you end of abril!

Nancy

Sorin said...

I think that is fantastic idea and I'm a leader (and a guy). Bring them over, maybe people would become more inclined to actually dance at milongas (as opposed to execute movements vaguely connected to the music ...)

Good luck!

S

Anonymous said...

Wow. Would it work? I'd go.

Would there be any possibility for men's practicas, men following the milongueros?

I run North America's only men's practica in New York's Hell's Kitchen, La Practica del Infierno. We're a group of leaders who cultivate our dancing the old-fashioned way, by dancing the follower's role and critiquing each other's leading. During my last visit to Argentina, it was invaluable getting a milonguero to lead me.

Jai de Nueva York

Anonymous said...

Ladies would pay that much for a bus-full of tango dancers? Really? Man, I'm in the wrong profession, and apparently I have all the wrong hobbies too!

tangocherie said...

Cesar, you have no idea how much ladies pay (men too) for tango!
Especially if you add up tango shoes and tickets to Buenos Aires.

How fun to bring it all to them instead!

I got this idea years ago when it was possible, but nowadays the difficulty of getting U.S. Visas makes the plan only a fantasy, unfortunately.

Anonymous said...

I wont promote the tour for you unless you have equal numbers of argentine women to dance with. Im taling milongueras. The men in NYC have the money but not enough good followers. I pay $85 per hour to take a private with a good follow. Entonces, the rate for the milonguera will have to be less than that.

TangoMarty

Anonymous said...

I think this is a great idea - in fact, I've been doing it in a very, very small way to see how it might work. Right now I am working on a fundraiser for a local non-profit, using a version of "taxi dancer." - I was modeling it on a dance I have been to in NYC that has been doing it in a very small way for a really long time - although it is all ballroom, not tango ....

if you need an east coast rep. - let me know :) - I live in Buffalo, which is within 500 miles of 1/2 the population of Canada, including Toronto which is only about 2 hours away - maybe less; NYC Boston, Chicago, etc. (again, in a very, very small way)and 500 miles from 1/3 the population of the US - and that includes NYC, Boston, Chicago, Detroit. etc.) We also have a growing tango community which, though still new, is very excited and supportive of anything tango......

barbra