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For more information:
Kelly Ray
tanguero@verizon.net
(215) 574-9555
or
Lesley Mitchell
tanguera@verizon.net
(215) 629-2344

About Kelly and Lesley

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Tango, as danced in Buenos Aires, the cosmopolitan capital of Argentina, is an elegant, sensual and intensely connected dance experience. It's been a worldwide favorite for decades, and today is riding a new wave of popularity across the generations. We'll show you its simplicity - and its complexity. You may have seen it on Broadway, but you can do it too.

Classes

Classes at the Buttonwood Street Studio and at the University City Arts League. 

Tango at Buttonwood Studio, 1315 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia:
Tango I.  Fridays, 8:30 - 9:30. Start anytime! 1315 Buttonwood St (drop in class)
Tango I (Fundamentals), Tuesdays 6:30 pm. Drop in classes, ongoing
Tango I, Saturday, 1:30 - 3 pm 315 Buttonwood St (4 weeks, starts Sept 11)
Tango II (Variations), Tuesdays 7:30- 8:30 pm. Drop in classes, ongoing
Tango II, Saturdays. 3:00 - 4:30 pm.(4 weeks, starts Sept 11)
Tango III, Sundays. 5:30-7 pm. Ongoing
Tango IV, Mondays 7:45 - 9:05 pm. Ongoing. By permission of instructor, talk to us if interested!

Argentine Tango BOOT CAMP I. 2 Sundays, Sept 12 & 19.
4 hours of class time each day! For beginning dancers or those wanting a review, this class focuses on the fundamentals of tango movement, posture, rhythm & leading/following skills. Gets you out on the dance floor quickly. Great for followers who want to learn to lead, and vice versa.
12 to 4:30 pm (1/2 hour break)
1315 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia
$105 for two-day course prepaid. $120 at door. Please call or email to RSVP.

Upcoming Tango Boot Camps:
Tango Boot Camps are an opportunity to immerse yourself in a two-day intensive study of Argentine Tango or a related dance such as Tango Vals or Milonga. Boot camps are designed to give you a concentrated learning experience that gets you started fast or takes your dance to the next level. We address key skills such as dance vocabulary, movement, posture, leading & following and musical interpretation for each dance at each level. 
Sept 12 & 19: Tango I
Sept 26 & Oct 3: Tango Vals
October 10 & 17: Tango I
October 24 & 31: Milonga

Argentine Tango at University City Arts League, 4226 Spruce Street, Philadelphia:
Tango I. Wednesdays, 8 - 9:20 pm (10 weeks, starts Sept 15)
Contact Kelly & Lesley with questions, or call 215 382 7811 to register

You are always welcome to drop into any scheduled class for a preview. Private lessons are available in two Philadelphia locations with Kelly or Lesley for individual attention to accelerate your learning!

Ongoing Argentine Tango Practica at Buttonwood Studio, with preceding drop-in classes on Tuesdays, Buttonwood Street Studio.
6:30 pm: Tango Fundamentals class (for beginners or for review)
7:30 pm: Tango Variations class (some experience needed)
8:30 to 11 pm: Guided Practica (Help is available as you practice, when and if you want it. Plenty of individual attention is available.)

1 class $10, 2 classes $17, practica only $7.
2 classes and practica (4 1/2 hours of dancing!) for $20. Series discounts available.
Light refreshments and great tango company included.

UCAL: 4226 Spruce St, Philadelphia (215) 382-7811 (to register for UCAL classes only) BSStudio: 1315 Buttonwood St, Philadelphia (215) 574-9555 or (215) 629-2344 (to register for Buttonwood Street Studio classes or for all other information) Private lessons: Consider arranging small classes tailored to your specific needs. You and a group of friends can find a time that suits you, what aspect you want to concentrate on. Small classes give you lots of individual attention. You can do one lesson or a series, rotate partners or not. Our affordable prices vary according to number of people in class. Examples: $75/hour for 1 or 2 people $90/hour for 4 people $115/hour for 6 people Lesson packages for 1 or 2 people: 3 hours $200 5 hours $300 11 hours $600. Private lessons are available at UCAL and Buttonwood St. Studio. You can arrange for us to videotape your private lessons.

For more information about demonstrations & performances at your events, or group and private lessons, call Kelly or Lesley at (215) 574-9555 or (215) 629-2344.

Milongas (Argentine Tango Parties) Friday Night Milonga Enjoy a warm welcome at the first and longest running Milonga in Philadelphia! We are a diverse and friendly group which meets weekly to share our passion for Tango. Friday Night Milongas are now officially (instead of de facto) on until 2 am. 8:30 - 9:30 pm lesson for beginners 9:30 pm to 2 am dancing to classic tango music Great refreshments, BYOB 1315 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia Admission $12, full time students $10
La Milonga en Casa Potluck dinner** and tango dancing. If you'd like to join us at the potluck dinner, please RSVP with your intended contribution, decribed generally, ie appetizer, main dish (meat or vegetarian?), side dish, dessert, wine. If you won't be bringing food but rather intend to support someone else's dish, let us know in advance so we can ask that person to make extra. We want to make sure there is enough food for everyone.  About La Milonga en Casa, held every 3rd Sunday It was conceived nearly a decade ago as an opportunity for the Tango comnunity to enjoy good food, good company and tango. We supply non alcoholic beverages. Each diner is asked to contribute food or wine, keeping in mind that the dinner group usually numbers between 25 & 30 people. Ideally everyone should get at least a taste of what you've brought. Join us for dinner at 7:30 pm and/or tango dancing, 9 - 11:30 pm. Admission to dinner: Something to share. Admission to dance $10; full time students $8. 1315 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia

Special Events

Friday, Sept 3: Friday Night Milonga with Guest DJ Dasha Khripkova and a special class taught by Jake Spatz. Jake will be visiting us from Washington, DC, where he teaches, organizes tango events, and DJs. We've asked Jake to teach an all levels  class on Creative Tango in Small Spaces, 8:30 - 9:30 pm. Jake & Dasha will perform later in the evening.  
Surcharge for Jake's class: $5 with Milonga admission, $10 class alone. Admission to Milonga $12, full time university students $10.

October 26 - November 6, 2010
Heads up for our 9th Tango Tour to Argentina, BUENOS AIRES N0 DUERME (Buenos Aires Never Sleeps). Early registration price break has been extended to July 29.   Learn more......

Tango in the Square Summer into Autumn, 2010. FREE!
Come out and help us show Tango to Philadelphia! Every 2nd & 4th Saturday, 5-8 pm - note the new time! We've decided to extend Tango in the Square through October (by the way, it was fun to see so many of you out last Saturday). Sept. 11; Sept 25. Dancing for all, lessons for beginners. Rittenhouse Square, 18th & Walnut Streets, Philadelphia.

Join us on Facebook for lots of news and photos of the Philadelphia tango community!

PRESS: The Jewish Exponent has printed an article about our dance lessons for bridal couples in Argentine tango & other social dances. Check out page 29. And remember - if you or a friend need help learning to do that "First Dance" we'd love to help.

Dance Tutor lessons! Our Tango Valse 2 online video lessons are available at DanceTutor.com. From DanceTutor.com:
DanceTutor.com is pleased to announce the opening of Argentine Tango Waltz 2. The site is authored and danced by the popular Philadelphia Argentine tango teaching couple, Kelly Ray and Lesley Mitchell, and sports exciting figures, expertly danced and explained,---13 figures in all plus a demonstration video. Say the authors, "..... a fast, smooth dance that joins the seductive and rhythmic melodies of Argentine tango waltz to the complexities of Argentine tango. Tango vals utilizes almost the same vocabulary as tango, the biggest difference perhaps being that in response to the music the dancers tend to choose more turning steps, and also to choose not to pause as they frequently do in tango...". See www.DanceTutor.com for details:
Argentine Tango Waltz 2 table of contents: www.DanceTutor.com/tw2conten.htm
Argentine Tango Waltz 2 sample page with video: www.DanceTutor.com/tw2-12.htm
Argentine Tango Waltz 2 Authors' Introduction: www.DanceTutor.com/tw2-intro.htm

Be sure to check the tango calendar for the latest news. And don't forget Friday night milongas at the Buttonwood Studio, 1315 Buttonwood Street, Philadelphia!
Friday, March 26: Guest DJ Ewa
Friday, April 9:  Guest DJ Marcelo

Philadelphia's Argentine Tango Community

See more pictures!

Argentine Tango Links

More Philadelphia area tango information - http://www.tangophiladelphia.com/

Other U.S. cities and regions:
Princeton, NJ - http://www.princeton.edu/~tango/
Washington DC area - http://www.le-tango.com/
San Francisco Bay area - http://www.batango.com/

General Tango Information - National and International:
Reportango Magazine (great where-to-dance listings, general info) -
http://www.reportango.com/reportango.html
A Buenos Aires site (general information) - http://www.abctango.com.ar/
Christian Mensing's great links to tango sites - http://www.inorg.chem.ethz.ch/group/cm/tango_link.html
The Tango Catalog's online web contacts - http://www.thetangocatalogue.com/Links.asp

Our favorite tango music and where to buy it!