So far, it looks good for more dance time.  I will let you know next week what the new schedule will be for July.

During June, the beginner lesson will go from 7:00 to 7:30 and the intermediate lesson from 7:30 to 8:30, Dinner and dancing begin at 8:30.  We'll also add fifteen minutes at the end of the evening, playing until 11:15. That gives us forty-five minutes more of tango, milonga, and vals.

Let us know what you think by sending an e mail to firehousetango@gmail.com.  If you don't, we will have to decide without your input.

Sue and Joe Dallon

No celebrations next week - Just fabulous dancing, learning, dining and socializing with the greatest group around

Tango Tip of the week - June 12

Note from Sue - You'll find Fran Chesleigh's Tango Tips in Firehouse Tango's weekly newsletter and on www.firehousetango.com.  They are interesting and informative, and you should always read them.  Every once in a while, I find one of these gems so important that I am moved to offer print copies at our milonga. Last week's tip is one of them.  I've repeated it below.  This week's Tango Tip follows it.

Hi everybody, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. For several Tango Tips in the recent past, I've been discussing some of the important problems we all incur in attempting to maintain the line of direction while dancing. On May 8, we talked about the "gestural" -- as opposed to the "functional" -- nature of Tango. On May 15, we observed that Tango is at the same time both a "progressive" and a "spot" dance. And on May 22, we underscored the fact that modern Tango consists of movement and of stillness -- meaning that sometimes we travel, and sometimes we don't.  (You can read all about these impediments to maintaining the line of direction in our Tango Tips of May 8, May 15, and May 22. Just go to the archive section of our Firehouse Web site.)

All these factors -- which are inherent to the nature of Tango -- contribute to making it quite difficult for any leader to keep the dance moving along on a predictable track. How, then, can we possibly expect to get ourselves around the dance floor in a consistent and orderly fashion? The simple (but definitely not easy) answer to this crucial question is that as leaders, we have to change focus. We have to make up our minds once and for all that we're going to stop exclusively serving our own momentary needs, and start paying attention to the needs of other people on the dance floor.

Let me give you an example of what I'm talking about here. You've been thinking about a figure that you learned in class -- or maybe that you half-learned on YouTube -- a few days/hours/minutes ago. You can't wait to take it to the dance floor. Everyone will be really impressed. People will stop and stare. You'll be a star!

Okay, suddenly, there you are right in the middle of that crowded dance floor. You're so focussed on your special figure that you can't wait to try it out. In fact, you do try it as soon as possible -- before checking to see whether it will interfere with what's going on around you. And guess what happens? It does interfere. The line of dance is completely disrupted.

You're not a star; you're a menace.

Alternate universe: You're itching to try that new figure, but your primary focus is solidly right where it should be; i.e., on the needs of the people around you. Because the floor is crowded, you recognize the fact that right at this moment trying your figure might be dangerous. So you wait until the time seems right. Maybe that time comes; maybe it doesn't. Eventually, the dance comes to an end, and -- at least in part because of your efforts -- everybody has managed to collectively negotiate the line of dance without interference from you.

Do you get the idea? I'm not saying here that you should never try out that great figure you've been working on. Just make certain that when you do, it works not only for you, but for everybody else around you as well.

If you can manage this essential change in the way you approach your social dancing, you really will start to become a true Tango star!

Hi everybody, Fran here with your Tango Tip of the Week. "How do I learn to dance Tango?" if you recall, I asked this question in last week's Tango Tip. During our discussion, I suggested one possible answer -- to imitate our favorite dancers. (If you'd like to read the full text of what was said, you'll find it in our Tango Tip of the Week archives on the Firehouse Tango Web site.)

Just to amplify the point I made last week, one of the very popular and effective ways in which people learn things -- particularly physical actions of any kind -- is by watching other people do them. For example, if I'm trying to teach you even a rudimentary dance movement, it might take me several paragraphs to describe it. But if I give you a physical demonstration, you'll probably say, "oh, is that what you meant!"

It seems to remain undeniably true that a picture is worth a thousand words.

When it comes to Tango, however, physical demonstration/imitation is only one -- albeit a very powerful -- component of the teaching/learning process. For the next several weeks, I'm going to discuss what I think are the elements necessary for students to maximize their chances of becoming proficient at dancing Tango. Here is a quick summary of what I believe these elements are:

1.     Imitate good dancers

2.     Become a good student

3.     Get the right information

4.     Work with a good teacher

5.     Log in the appropriate amount of time on the dance floor

I've already talked at some length about the notion of imitating good dancers. Today, I'll discuss what we think it takes to become a good student.

To begin with, the process of learning -- not only Tango, but, in fact, anything at all -- can be quite distressing for many people. Lots of students believe, for example, that if they can't learn something right away, there's something wrong with them. Others become unnecessarily distraught, when they seem to keep forgetting from moment to moment what their teacher has been saying. Still others are unwilling to commit to the learning process at all, because they believe deep down that they'll ultimately be exposed as the worst students in the class, or that no matter how hard they try, they'll never be able to learn.

These are common experiences that many of us have had at some point or other during the learning process. Some of us are able to simply shrug these negative experiences off, and keep going. But sometimes such problems can be so overwhelming that they cause students to defeat themselves before they even get started. Without, I hope, sounding overly simplistic here, I think a good first step in dealing with difficulties such as these -- let's call them "head games" -- is to say to yourself that notwithstanding your prohibitions about the learning process -- no matter how scary it may at first seem -- you're just going to jump in and do it anyway. And you're going to keep at it until you learn.

If you can manage to adopt that attitude, your initial problems and fears will most likely disappear in time, or, at least, become manageable.

After recognizing and, I hope, getting past any fears you may have about the learning process, the next item on your checklist might be to assess your enthusiasm level. If you really want to be a Tango dancer, you need to be willing to do whatever it takes to become one. If your attitude is that you sort of think it might be okay as long as you don't have to actually do much to get there, you should consider trying something a bit less demanding than Tango -- like sitting in front of the TV all day, or spending your leisure time practicing the popular sport of compulsive overeating. (Just kidding.)

Becoming a good student ultimately means preparing yourself to play a very active role in the learning process. It's not by any means a question of having your teacher spoon-feed you, while you just sit back and enjoy the ride. In order to learn, you need to really want it. You need to work maybe harder than you've ever worked before. You need to be infinitely patient that you'll get there when you get there, and not a minute sooner. And as you progress, you need to swallow a huge helping of humility to keep yourself from suddenly thinking you're now better than everybody else.

Finally, you need to develop a very strong and unrelenting sense of humor. There are a whole lot of things in life that are really serious. But social dancing -- as hard as it may be to become really good at -- is not one of them. I often tell my students that they should consider any social dancing -- including Argentine Tango -- to be little more than "escapist lunacy," meaning lots of fun (I hope), but not worth getting all upset about.

If you can manage to think of social dancing in that way. I think you'll be well on your way to becoming a really good student.

 Every day, our dear friend and teacher in Buenos Aires posts a historical tango fact of the day. These interesting and informative tidbits always include English, Spanish and Italian  information and a relevant recording. You can see all of them and listen to the recording by simply joining Monica Paz PractiMilonguero Facebook page. Below is the post for June 14th and a link to the Facebook page, where you can hear the music:

 14th of June, 1969 - Death of ROBERTO FIRPO. He was not a conservatory pianist, but he could read and write on the staff. We can say that he represented the epitome of the tango musician. He was a prolific and tenacious composer. In 1913 he released three tangos in one night: SENTIMIENTO GAUCHO, LA MAREJADA and DE PURA CEPA. Here another tango played by his own orchestra.

 https://www.facebook.com/MPTango

And the following one for her latest interview (She regularly posts interviews that she does with surviving old milongueros) : 

MP Tango Interview

MPTango Presents Jorge Garcia at PractiMilonguero

http://youtu.be/iBvxXlJp3FU

For All Day Sunday Participants**

Here's how it goes:
- You get to Honor's Haven Resort....  (directions below)
Your name will be at the hotel gate.

- Proceed up drive to hotel. 
Park where gate-person tells you, and enter main entrance where you will see the front desk. (I will be around the front desk area for most arrivals.)
- The Hotel will have your name, and you will sign in.

- **** Please directly pay the hotel the $50 for all day.
- They will give you a wrist band which you must wear for all the workshops and lunch.
Then proceed to the workshop space - the hotel staff will tell you where we are gathering.

- The Dance Lunch is on the Main floor in the Ballroom (adjacent to the hotel desk). 
We will have a table reserved for participating Tangueros, I will be posted in dining room to direct you to the table.

- La Rubia's Milonguita will be held downstairs in the Zephyr Lounge, which has  great new wood floor.
(There is a small cafeteria near the Zephyr Lounge open to 3pm, serving very good coffee and snacks.)

Please let me know if you have additional questions!


*** IN ADDITION TO THE 11AM AND NOON INTERMEDIATE 1 & 2 WORKSHOPS- YAISURI AND JOHN HERNAN WILL ALSO BE DOING A 10AM beginners workshop- which is now included in the $50 package.

Looking forward to seeing and dancing with you! xoxo I.

__________________________________
 @Honor's Haven Resort
1195 Arrowhead Rd, Ellenville, NY 12428
DESK: (845) 210-1600
ILENE'S CELL  NUMBER- 845 399-9034
__________________________________

* Sunday Tango Program

10am - 4:30pm

10-11am NEW! BEGINNERS WORKSHOP

- 11am-1pm:

Two Intermediate Workshops with

YAISURI & JOHN HERNAN

11AM- NOON & NOON-2PM

- 1pm-2pm:

ELEGANT 3-COURSE LUNCH,WITH DANCING

LATIN-HUSTLE-WEST COAST SWING-LINDY-TANGO & BALLROOM

- 2pm-4:30pm:

LA RUBIA'S MILONGUITA !

Dance to exquisite, inspiring TANGO CLASSICS,

plus some modern nuevo gems

Your HOST & DJ ILENE MARDER~ LA RUBIA DEL NORTE

-  ALL DAY SUNDAY PACKAGE: JUST $50

3 hours of Workshops,

1 hour Elegant Dance Mix Lunch,

and 2-1/2 hour Milonguita

or

- DANCE LUNCHEON & MILONGUITA ONLY: JUST $35

or

- LA RUBIA'S MILONGUITA ONLY: COMPLIMENTARY- NO CHARGE!

Next Milonga - Saturday, June 21st, 2014

Special guest instructor - Alicia Cruzado

Alicia Cruzado is an authentic master of salon tango, experienced as a dancer, teacher, choreographer and artistic director. More information on her site - http://www.aliciatango.com/

Alicia's lesson at 7:00pm

Social dancing from 8:00pm
Couples, singles and beginners welcome!

Admission $15, including home cooked "delight"

[strong style="background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"]VFW (Veterans of Foreign Wars)
725 Franklin Ave.
(corner of Pulis Ave.)
Franklin Lakes NJ 07417

For directions click here

For more information contact us at:
info@lospitucos.com
and visit our website at
http://lospitucos.com

The following folks helped set up, break down and clean up before and after the milonga. Without them, there would be no Firehouse Tango.

• Terri Lopez
• Tony Mele
  
• Tsipoyra Sartan
• Steve Maisch
  
• Jesse Barton
• Bob Brillo
  
• Steve Turi
• Debbie Glaser
  
• Elena Titova
  
• Mike Porro
• Hilda and Rafael
• Walter Milani
  

• Eva Roth brought her excellent meatloaf with hard boiled eggs and rice.  There was not a morsel left.
  

• Rifky Mackeen
• George Ngo
• Mary Pagano
• Walter Milani
• Bill Krukovsky
• Bob Brillo
• Horatio Piccioni
• Jesse Barton
• Eduardo Campos