Milonga Matinee, Dance with Kristina

Milonga Matinee, Dance with Kristina

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Posted 2018-11-20 by Donna Sue Robsonfollow

Sun 09 Dec 2018



Focused around family culture, Kristina Diaz runs Sunday matinee Milongas that are truly inclusive. On October 21st, Dance with Kristina successfully brought together Melbourne's Argentinean community with 'Tangueros' and 'Tangueras', Melbourne Tango dancers who have essentially discovered Latin culture through dance. The afternoon's program included public dance classes that inspired people to mingle, and student performances that showcased how Argentinean history is expressed through Tango. Tango quintet La Busca provided live music, and impromptu duets by Pedro Diaz Ferreyra and notable Argentinean folk musicians expanded the musical menu. Tango social dancing, forever the heartbeat of any Milonga, was enjoyed by this very warm and embracing social crowd.

Diaz's next Milonga Matinee is planned for December 9th at the same venue, Our Lady Help of Christians Church Hall in East Brunswick, now a clear favourite for community social events. To wind up 2018, La Bien Pulenta Tango Trio will entice Tango social dancers to the dance floor. You can also expect performances, public dance classes and vibrant family fun.
October's matinee was headlined by Kristina's father, Pedro Diaz Ferreyra, who had just turned 75. There was no better way to honour Pedro, recognised as a key figure in bringing Argentinean culture to Melbourne, than through a celebration of culture, Milonga-Peña style.
Pedro Diaz Ferreyra immigrated to Melbourne with his family in 1976 and rallied to organise Argentinean folk music and dance events (Peñas) across Victoria. Not only did Pedro's 'Peña El Fogón' connect Argentinean families to each other in the most natural of ways, but helped to promote Latin American culture in Melbourne and gave Argentinean musicians and dancers recognition. 'Peña El Fogón' was an artistic playground for the young Kristina Diaz, inspiring her vision to make dance culture an integral part of Australian life. Kristina's Milongas are not a brazen advertisement for her dance school: they evoke the culture of which Tango is a part, and tell the traditions and stories of Argentina and her people.

La Busca, Melbourne's premier Tango quintet, were very much at home on the East Brunswick community stage. 'Tangueros' and 'Tangueras' danced to a live-music selection that included the lesser-known Tango styles such as Milonga and Vals. Interestingly enough, the more modern style of Tango Nuevo was not given air-time. At this Milonga, there were no feelings of being a 'wallflower' or 'dancer judgement' to overcome (which can happen in the Tango or partner-dancing social scene). The 10-chaired table settings provided plenty of opportunity for old friends to connect and new friendships to be made.

Dance and conversation was kick-started with a Diaz-led public dance class, which highlighted the Milonga rhythm and dance. An urban style of Tango born in the male-dominated Buenos Aires of the 1930s, the Milonga dance class celebrated the Diaz family's Argentinean roots. Kristina taught fundamentals and then layered sequences, making it easy for people to 'feel the groove', get to know people, and to start dancing. A Tango baptism with a friendly vibe, guests were confident to join in social dancing that continued until early evening.

The crowd, which numbered between 70 and 100 people, came together again in a public dance called 'Chacarera'. This is a folk dance that clearly delighted Argentinean families raised on Peñas. For Tango dancers who spend time practising their steps and attending classes, it gave Tango a panoramic cultural context.

Student performances detailed Argentinean stories and histories. This set started with an original Diaz-choreography for three couples from Locomotion, one of many dance schools where Kristina teaches. Costumed in all-black Tango chic, students executed classic Tango moves, poise and lines. Locomotion's rendition of 'Para Dos' exhibited how Argentinean dance-culture is now enjoyed by generations of Melbournians from diverse cultural-ethnic backgrounds.

The second performance, in which Kristina danced the lead, showed a very different side of Argentinean history which subtlety echoed Kristina's commitment to inclusion. It was a performance of 'Tango Negro' that uses 'Candombe' rhythms (Afro-Uruguayan undertones) to declare the rights of Black Africans to 'dance the Tango'. The final performance was a return to classic Tango elegance, a special Diaz-choreography for Franco and Evgeniya's wedding. It was a fitting finale that throned Argentine Tango as 'the dance of love'.

Freestyle dancers know that there is nothing quite like dancing to a live band. At Kristina's October Milonga Matinee, La Busca's energy was invitational and intimate, embracing family culture that is a quintessential part of the Argentinean spirit. La Busca's lead singer Juan then accompanied Pedro as he sang stories and shared cherished memories from his Peña days. The duo meandered through a stream of narrative melodies, and then hand-passed the microphone to folk musicians Alex, Jorgé, Ellen and Bill. Their laid-back folk-style transported us back to colourful streets and cobbled squares of the Argentine barrios, where buskers and bards continue to play.

Food also tells a story. Teresa Diaz's Argentinean menu was based on Pedro's favourites, including a massive 'Mil hojas' birthday cake. It was a heart-warming moment when Kristina publicly acknowledged her mum's culinary contribution to the family's Peñas, Milongas and cultural-event history. Teresa's home-made food added love, generosity and feminine nurture to the matinee celebration.

Kristina's Milonga matinees have a broad, family appeal that unite people through the experience of community, dance and music. Don't miss 'Dance with Kristina's' end-of-year Milonga Matinee bash on Sunday December 9th. If you want to connect with Latin American culture or make inroads to learn Argentine Tango , this is the place to be.

Milonga Matinee will continue on the 3rd Sunday of every month in 2019 (except for the December event which is held on the 2nd Sunday of the month).

#brunswick_east
#community_events
#cultural_events
#dancing
#family
#music
#october
!date 09/12/2018 -- 09/12/2018
%wnmelbourne
200007 - 2023-06-16 04:55:03

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