Modern Tango World N° 11 (Paris, France) | Page 15

Outdoor Tango in Paris
Emile Gayoso
It is said tango tango as a salon dance, to be danced on smooth and shiny parquet floors, in the cozy atmosphere of
subdued club where the dancers are dressed formal attire and balltoom gowns — the scented ladies and gentle-
men and ladies wearing their Sunday best.
It ishould be remembered that tango began as a march,
of a city walkm It was born on the pavements, not on
the parquets. To be true to its origins, on the streets
of Buenos Aires, in the courtyards of rooming houses
and bordelos. Dancers put great effort into their work,
their long walk, It was a way to survey the city, slip-
ping on the tarmac, floating silently on asphalt, dream-
ing of exploding concrete with every step. Dancers
distinguished fthemselves more by the quality of their
march than by the panoply of figures and movements
the could perform.
Every summer for nearly thity years Parisians and curi-
ous people from all over the world have gone there.
From June until September, picnicing on the lawns and
the steps, dancing in the center or above overlooking
the garden.
This tango spot has its neighbors: upstream on the Seine
is a traditional bal, downstream: there is salsa, still further
there is rock and higher level, more salsa, Latin dance that
decidedly dominates, accompanied by the Afro-Caribbe-
an rhythms of bachata and kizomba.
Let’s return to the streets, to the open-air of our city,
Paris. Let’s see how the tango is doing and meet these
dancers who make their heels resonate on the streets
of Paris — both legal and illegal
If there is one place for tango outdoors in Paris, it is a
place that tourist guides would not hesitate to describe
as picturesque, a small [;ace located in the shadow of a
weeping willow, open to the water of the Seine, in the
heart of a garden that bears the name of a singer who
sometimes lent his voice to the tango — Tino Rossi.
Located in the 5th arrondissement, along the Seine, near
the Institut du Monde Arabe. Jardin Tino Rossi has
the distinction of being a public park of contemporary
sculptures. But what makes this place alive, and more ef-
fervescent, is the party, the music and the dance!
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