Two Concerts in Nottingham

The main attraction for Cheryl to visit, was a concert from Bonnie Raitt. Because of Cheryl's recommendation I have a couple of CDs and play them regularly. Cheryl and Ian have all her CDs and have seen her a dozen times and had tickets for her Albert Hall concert just 3 days later.
We sat in the second row and had a superb view and I really felt she was singing to us and responding to us and not just going through the planned songs. She has been touring for 43 years and can handle an audience so well that we felt special and were all on our feet at the end.

We booked for Souls Sister just to have the Monday night out! Expectation was a few rousing Tina Turner songs. This was so much more! Emi Wokoma played Tina Turner in a biography which was an excuse for lots of great songs. It was a brilliant copy of Tina's mannerisms, dancing style, hair and enthusiasm. Ike Turner's terrible and brutal behaviours was not hidden.
Dare I say that Emi Wokoma was better than the original!

Hereford Walking Festival 17-22 June

Cheryl had booked two tickets on 4 walks and then her friend cried off with a foot injury. I was pleased to step up and stride out. All the walks are guided and limited to about 20 people. Because it is a Festival, they are not just route marches. Some started with coffee, some finished with lunch or a cream tea. All involved some history of the area and lots of informed comments. The best views and the best weather coincided when we walked along and above the Wye. That day was a T shirt day whereas we needed rainwear on or to hand as dark clouds moved over on other walks. The most interesting was one where we visited a potter, a carpenter (lovely tactile furniture) and the products from the guide's apple orchard. Various apple juices, cider, proper peri and wine were all offered for us to taste.
A great week and I feel fitter!

Tango in Sandbach, Cheshire - Dance Inspired

This was a weekend event (8/9 June) which Phil, Rosanna and I attended.  It was held at a boy's school which provided excellent facilities (although the floor looked like it was wearing out and needed a coat of something!). In its own playing fields, it was a delightful setting with Sandbach itself a few minutes walk away and Crewe and the Holiday Inn for our overnight stay, just 10 minutes drive.
The big attraction was Homer and Cristina who are wonderful teachers and all the workshops we attended were with them. They are concerned that you take something away and at the end of the workshop they hold a simple Q and A session and then dance the moves for us to video. There were too many people on the workshops for everyone to get some personal attention but that is a minor criticism. They have well thought out ideas as to what constitutes beginners, improvers, intermediate and advanced dancers and as a group we failed to meet up with what they expected and they dumbed down a bit to accommodate.
The Saturday milonga was excellent with some live music. Despite a request to dress smart, someone turned up in shorts, hardly fit for the beach! Send them home, I say! Almost all made a real effort and there were some beautiful dresses and of course some great dancing.
The lunches were ordinary but the cream tea dance, the finale on Sunday, was excellent.

I will certainly attend Dance Inspired events again, especially if they get teachers the quality of Homer and Cristina.

Edinburgh International Tango Festival 24-27 May

This is the fourth time I have attended the Festival and I love it. I love Edinburgh and it looked at its best on Saturday with the backing of a cloudless blue sky. Those solid buildings looked even more emphatic and indestructible. On that basis alone I would vote for independence if I were a Scotsman. It's an emotional decision, forget all that economic stuff. But I digress, Regina and I were there for the tango!
The formula is great, workshops limited in number of participants, great teachers (of course Jennie and Ricardo are supreme), the cafe with many hours of informal dancing and some lovely milongas, with spectacular demonstration dances by the teachers. So can there be anything to complain about! Well, of course there is always something.....the floorcraft at the milongas is bad, bordering on dangerous. So, what can be done? Here are my thoughts. Some rules should be published, dance in lanes, no stepping backwards, no big gaps in front, clear the floor completely when the cortina plays and so on. A respected Maestro should be in charge of the DJ and the conduct of the milonga. His/her job is to remind people of the rules and maybe when the floor gets crowded to announce no extravagant boleos of ganchos. My special hate is for those who dance with upper arm horizontal so the elbow sticks out, just about at head height. This is an act of aggression! I do not walk down the street with fists clenched which is an equivalent gesture! You can't play contact sports with elbows like that! The Maestro should warn and then dismiss them from the milonga.
Rant over, thank you Edinburgh!

Good things that happened in April and May

On April 2nd Annabelle and I went to see Matthew Bourne's Sleeping Beauty. I think it is the best thing I have ever seen on the stage! The dance is so expressive and I marvel at how someone can direct the movements such that those movements really do say something to me.

On 26 April Lisa's milonga had the support cast from Midnight Tango dance in and around us and, for some, with us. Wonderful to see such talented dancers and I really must ask somebody of that stature to dance with me. What is the worst thing that can happen......that's the problem I must not think like that!

May brought a visit from Tony and Lesley from Newcastle, very special friends. We had good meals, cream teas, a little sight seeing and on the 10th a visit to the Playhouse to see the stage version of The Kite Runner. It was splendid and brought out all the emotions that i felt from the book.

May 19th brought Pablo Nievas and Valeria Zunino to Nottingham to dance and to teach. They are wonderful at both and I am excited that they will be back in Buenos Aires when a few of us will be there. A series of lessons will surely make so much difference to my dancing. I will be happy with a couple of steps along this life long journey to tango satisfaction.