[TANGO-L] Your center

[Lois Donnay <donnay @donnay.net>]

> Carlene also subtly makes the point that the body's "center"
> is not the chest....  a very important statement - the center
> is right around the belly button, or at least in that region.

This is so important. I hear so many teachers say "lead with the chest",
when that's not how they dance themselves-they dance from their center.
They're just repeating what they heard when they were taught. These are
the same teachers who say "Use your hand to guide her" or "lift her"
when I never feel them use their hands or arms or a lift on me.

That's why I love this new group of tango teachers, who are
reinterpreting the standard way of teaching tango, making it much more
accessible and easier to learn. Perhaps the cultural or language
differences make us Americans interpret what some teachers say
differently, but I know how I learned tango and how I dance it are in
many ways quite different. Many times, you just have to figure it out
for yourself.

Lois, Minneapolis