Durango Tango: Heart, Soul, Brains

               I’d like to give a shout out to the heart, soul and brains of our tango society in Durango: Harold Welty, Keneen McNiven, Les Linton and Rhonda Stroup. I arrived in March to find a fledgling tango group that looked much like the deer in town after a hard winter. That is not the case today and our family is thriving with a webpage www.tangodurango.com, a Facebook page www.facebook.com/groups/353689751341313/, regular practicas and well-attended workshops. None of this would be possible without the dedication and hard work from this core group of tango fanatics. We are heading into the winter fatter than a herd of elk feeding on a field of corn all summer long.

               The reason for my enthusiasm is two weekends of excellent tango instruction right in my own backyard. Normally I would have to travel to Albuquerque or Santa Fe, 400 miles roundtrip, to find similar offerings. Tom Stermitz and Amy Beaudet taught on 10/13 and 10/14. Les Linton and Rhonda Stroup taught 10/21.

               Les and Rhonda are the brains of our body of tango. Together they bring us a wealth of information on three styles of this Argentine dance: vals, milonga and tango. Through their efforts we are educated on the movement, history and musicality of this cultural export from south of the equator. Conducting workshops every third Sunday of the month since March, this dynamic duo has been present as we grew from a mere puddle of quivering water to a virtual lake of tango enthusiasts.

               Keneen McNiven, D.C./yoga instructor, is the soul of our group, reaching out beyond our borders to bring in excellent instructors like Tom and Amy from www.tango.org. Whether she is guiding us on the dance floor towards a greater connection with our partners or on the yoga mat to help us see our inner light more clearly, Keneen is diligently working towards the happiness and inner peace of all members of our society. You can find out more about her on her webpage: www.sanjuanomyoga.com/.

               Finally there is Harold Welty, the heart of tango in Durango. Once a wandering tanguero to all points of the tango compass, even BsAs, Harold is our committed webmaster and frequent poster on our Facebook page. Harold is at every practica and every workshop, there to assist, instruct, or, as is often the case, to help clean up after a busy day of instruction or dancing. Whenever I dance in Albuquerque or Santa Fe and I say I’m from Durango, Harold is always mentioned and remembered with great affection. Their loss is our gain, thank you, Harold!

               Winter is almost upon us. Les and Rhonda have one more workshop on tango vals before snow threatens our Rocky Mountain roadways. It will not be a season without tango, however, there will still be practicas at the Smiley Building on Sunday and, beginning in November, regular practicas in Aztec, NM, during the week.

Peace, Love, Tango

Kayak Hombre