neotango [neoh-tang-goh] n. Argentine Tango without limits or restrictions.

If describing Argentine Tango to someone who has never seen it is challenging, then giving a meaningful definition of Neotango may be even harder. The term literally means "New Tango" and was not in use until relatively recently, but does this imply that this is a new type of dance? Or is it something else about it that makes it "new"?

In the years following the tango revival in the 1970s it became common to refer to a lot of what was happening in the tango world as 'tango nuevo' (also 'new tango', but this time derived from Spanish). The term was ambiguous, and whilst some used it to refer to a more open and expressive style of dancing favoured by the younger dancers, others used it to refer to a style of teaching that was more modern and technical than the old 'watch, follow, repeat' method that had previously been in use. Others even used the term to describe more modern tango music that had been written especially for the dance in the traditional style, but may make use of more modern instruments and musical arrangements. In other words the term 'tango nuevo' meant whatever someone wanted it to mean, and this of course resulted in confusion.

Dancers began to realise that whatever 'tango nuevo' might mean, it was still something that had firm links to the traditional tango ways of doing things, and so for the younger and more experimental dancers who loved the dance but wanted to be able to dance it however and wherever they liked with no traditions to navigate, a new word started to come into use... 'Neotango'.

Evolution

The Neotango concept was born from the natural evolution of Argentine Tango, when its dancers started to look to music other than from the usual tango repertoire and said 'I can dance to that'. It began in clubs and venues that played mixed music styles, where it was expected that you might be dancing LeRoc one minute and Salsa the next, and so it was natural that people tried dancing tango to non-traditional music.

Dedicated Neotango events started to appear and some venues stopped playing any 'traditional' music at their social dances altogether. DJs and organisers began to experiment with the format and took a more 'nightclub' approach to the experience, with no gaps at all between tracks and rooms lit with projectors or complex disco lighting systems. Dancers inspired by this new approach started to draw more from the more dramatic aspects of tango, and the 'tango escenario' or 'tango fantasia' styles that had mostly been seen on the stage until then began to make their way into the social dances.

A New Dance?

If you watch some of the earliest film of people dancing tango in 1930s and 1940s Buenos Aires and then compare it with the most modern Neotango performance you can find, you will soon realise that the dance itself is fundamentally the same. A dancer from 2021 could travel back in time to The Golden Age, and other than a few surprised comments about their outfit they would fit right in with the local tango scene. So if Neotango is not a new dance style, how is it defined? What makes some tango 'neo' and some not?

Simply put, it is a way of looking at the Argentine Tango without it being filtered and limited by tradition. It is the same dance we love that has been danced for over a century around the world, but without all the artificial additives that it picked up along the way.

What makes Neotango?

If your class or event places more emphasis on enjoying the dance itself than it does on the trappings that go around it then you are probably Neo. If you are open to dancing tango to music that would not normally be considered as 'traditional tango music' then you are probably Neo. If you enjoy seeing people experiment with the dance and trying out new things then you too are probably Neo. Neotango is not a dance style or bright lights and amplified music, it is an openness to accept that some traditions might be best left behind as we look for ways to allow tango to continue to evolve as it always has.

Neotango is about inclusivity and about sharing the love of the dance without restricting how anyone chooses to dance it. If you are open to new ideas then whatever music you enjoy or whatever style of tango you learn or teach you are already more Neo than you might have realised.