The Performing Arts Center presents Tango Buenos Aires Nov. 18 at 7:30 p.m. in Hodgson Concert Hall. Tickets, $28 and $23, are half price for UGA students with a valid ID. Discounts are available for groups.
Tango Buenos Aires has become one of Argentina’s greatest cultural exports, known throughout the Americas, Europe and the Far East as the most authentic and uncompromising representative of the tango. The company’s Athens program is entitled The Four Seasons: Passion and Sensuality of the Tango Art Form from the Streets to the Ballroom.
Tango Buenos Aires was created for the Jazmines Festival at the famous Buenos Aires cabaret Michelangelo by renowned composer and tango director Osvaldo Requena.
In his notes about the origins of the tango, pianist Cristian Zárate writes: “The Argentine tango has a mixture of African and Spanish antecedents and also a strong influence from the Argentine milonga, which is sung by Gauchos, the Argentine ‘cowboys.’ In its beginnings, the tango was an ill-famed dance, being very fashionable in dance halls and cabarets, and also because the choreography called for the couple to hold each other very close. Tango choreography allows for a lot of creativity, requiring breaks in the rhythm and perfect coordination between the dancers.”
Tango Buenos Aires showcases a troupe of colorfully costumed dancers (left), along with a singer and onstage band — including two musicians playing the bandoneón, which is an accordion similar to the concertina and is considered the tango’s signature instrument. The ensemble is regarded as the world’s most seasoned and authentic tango company.
