Not always what you expect

Part of the adventure of tango is discovery. You and your partner discover possibilities all the time. The magic comes when you are both aware that you have discovered the same thing at the same time.

For example, the follower realizes she has room for an adornment or some extra footwork. At that same moment, the leader is aware of what she is doing and he keeps the time and space open for her to play. Often, these discoveries can be a very pleasant surprise for both dancers.

The same thing can happen in workshops and lessons. The teachers could be asking you to try a certain exercise, mechanic or sequence when all of a sudden, you discover that you can do something else with the idea that has been presented. Sometimes for me, it a lesson with a completely different teacher that pops in my head. This is the time when we make the idea your own.

I find that during an unrelated lesson, an older sequence will come to me that hadn't been working the way I wanted it to work. While the teacher is asking us to work on one idea, that old idea pops up and demands that I play with it. I am fortunate than many followers enjoy these moments of discovery too. It is especially fun when I can fit the old idea in the current exercise. It helps me reinforce the material and it adds variety to the lesson for the follower.

Followers can find these moments of discover, too. In lessons or workshops, an adornment or variation might come to mind - "ooh! I think I could fit that in between those movements!". Especially in a workshop when you have time, ask your partner to run the sequence again so that you can experiment. The exploration is fun for both sides.

Tango is a paired journey of discovery, adventure, mystery and play.