Tips for Newcomers

Starting to learn tango can be daunting. Learning to move with someone else in your arms - perhaps even cheek-to-cheek, getting familiar with the music and even just getting control of your own body takes time. So be patient with yourself and come along to a Club Practica to practice what you are learning.

Things to know and remember:

1. the ronda (line of dance) moves in an anti-clockwise direction. Keep moving forward. Don't cut across the floor.

2. when it's crowded, keep it simple and take small steps. No high kicks or leg swings.

3. tango is usually danced in a tanda; that is a set of 3 to 4 dances. When you get onto the dance floor expect to dance at least that many in a row. Then a strange, unrelated piece of music (the cortina or curtain music) will strike up, and that is your cue to move off and change partners. Leaders should escort their partners back to their seats.

Like all good things, tango doesn't come quickly or easily, but it is worth working for. Perhaps you too can find a moment of tango nirvana... haven't heard of that, ask a tanguero or tanguera (tango dancer) and they'll tell you.

In the meantime have a read of our Surviving Tango Guide for some inside information on how the tango world works.