Tango - lessons in Italy

 

Do you feel like dancing Tango in Italy? There is a center in Umbria, in the midst of nature, bordering on the Toscana, inviting Tango teachers from all over the world to workshops that you can attend, too.

The lessons focus on individual practice. There is a maximum of 18 participants or 9 couples per lesson. In the 15 to 20 lessons per week, depending on the program you choose, the content is suited to your dance level and you can practise and repeat it if needed. Still there is enough spare time to laze about, go on a trip or have a refreshing bath in the pool or the nearby Lago Trasimeno. In case of stressed out Tango-feet and -backs, a masseuse will be glad to be of your assistance. The workshops end with a small dance party or a trip to a dance event in the nearby surroundings.

The workshop's participants are accommodated in individual equipped double or single rooms (one bathroom for two rooms and one big kitchen for the whole group) or apartments, partly in a house around 2,5 km away. Dancing takes place in the dance hall (around 45 square meters) or on the terrace with a view over the hills when the sun shines or on mild nights. Every morning you'll have a sumptuous breakfast buffet and dinner consists of 3 to 4 course, drinks are included. If you want to have information, please read the journey report at the bottom of the page.

 

Tango classes for beginners, intermediate and advanced learners available during the months April, May, June, September and October. If you are interested in our current programme, please contact us via our contact form. We will pass on your request directly to the organizer who will inform you immediately about the current courses and the vacancies in these courses.

 

Please note the following informations:

• It’s possible to book as a single person. We will try to find an adequate partner. We will not confirm the booking until this partner (male/ female) is found.
• Arrival has to be managed individually and is not included in price.
  By train: The nearest station is Passignano sul Trasimeno, continous train traffic from Florence every 2 hours, the travelling time is 1 1/2 hours.
  By airplane: Nearest airports are Perugia (at only 35 km distance from La Rogaia) , Florence (travelling time to Passignano by train or car is 1 1/2 to 2 hours) or Rome (travelling time to Passignano by train or car is 2 1/2 to 3 hours). Cheap flights with e.g. Ryan Air to Perugia, Pisa, Ancona, Rimini, Forli and Roma Ciampino. There are flights with Ryan Air to Perugia from London Stanstead 3 times a week.
  We recommend an arrival by private or hired car, because the house is in the midst of nature: the nearest village is 4 kilometers away. We give you detailed information how to get there together with your booking.
• Languages spoken at the center are Italian, German, English and French. Languages spoken during the lessons are German and English, depending on the teacher. We can translate to Italian or Spanish if needed.
• For booking and questions/ inquiries please use our designated form.
• The above described programs are not self-initiated events by "Danza y Movimiento Travel". All of the above descriptions are based on informations form the organizers. Errors excepted; prices and services are subject to changes.
• We recommend to take out a travel cancellation insurance policy or other travel insurance policies.

 

Read Britta Loebell’s report on her summer workshop

Tango in the midst of olive groves

Sheep’s bell from the opposite hill. A cloud of white dots sets in motion, disperses between the olive groves silver splotches. Silence. Only the singing of the cicada fills up the flickering air. The monotonous chirping is broken by single new sounds. Yum, ba, yum, ba. Pugliese sounds over the terrace, the rose beds, becomes entangled in the treetops, vanishes over the hills into distant spaces. Couples finding each other, steps, turns, pausing and starting again.

Tango-Workshop in Umbria. Although not as relaxing as an argentinean hacienda, it is still very distant from any hectic pace and noise. Completely forget your everyday life. You find yourself in a little paradise, once you finish the bumpy road starting at the village Castel Rigone. Two old stone houses embedded in a big garden, surrounded by blooming lavender and rose fields, olive groves and willows. The Tango-guests are received with lovely renovated apartments and rooms. Each apartment has it’s own characteristic style, simple and modern with marble and glass or playfully nostalgic with arch stucco and old pieces of furniture. You will discover a lot of nice details like paintings, sculptures, fresh flowers from the garden, the bottle of wine on the desk. Due to the clever arrangement of the apartments you will have enough private sphere. Also the garden offers numerous hidden seats and corners. And those of you who want to refresh your feet tired by the Tango can do so at the pool, while glancing over the softly waved landscape and listen to the silence.

The lessons starts after a late breakfast. Step, step, turn and now all of that following the rhythm. Sweating characters in the cool dance hall. The only reminder of the stable this dance hall was previously used as are the rings set in into the wall. Now watercolour paintings hang on the white lime walls, marble sculptures catch the sunlight. You hear the quiet sound of leather soles on the tile floor, the couples practicing new step combinations very concentrated. Sometimes the house owners’ two little daughters follow the dancers with interested eyes from the door frame.
During the late afternoon lessons mediterranean fragrances find their way from the kitchen to the dance hall. Once the last turns are done, the sweat washed off and the sun sunk beyond the hills Ornella, the cook, has her big appearance. "Avete fame?" and of course everybody shouts "Si!!!" Then she brings mountains of pasta, umbrian roast pork with herbs, baked vegetarian vegetables and recently harvested salads. And of course her famous tiramisu and other Dolci – nothing to loose weight. The gentlemen daring to take on Ornella and her pounds on the dance floor can do so after coffee and grappa.

The owners Annette and Wolfgang have brought themselves a piece of their home to Umbria with the Tango lessons. Both met half-way through the 90s in Munich while dancing Tango. In 1998 they dared to realize a dream they had for a long time: to establish a venue for people to meet in an umbrian country house in the hills above the Lago Trasimeno. Tango enthusiasts from all around the world come to attend the lessons since 1999 and many come again and again. The special characteristic is he familiar atmosphere where the teachers stay for a chat on the terrace after the lessons, grab a guitar after dinner or play the piano. Every participant finds what he/she is searching for, from the lessons for beginners to the master class, and in case of small groups with a maximum of eight couples, guaranteed individual lessons. The different Tango styles are also represented. Those of you who prefer salon Tango come to Yvonne Meissner & Eduardo Aguirre or Ines & Ulrich from Berlin. If you like Tango nuevo you won’t miss Fabian Salas & Carolina del Rivero, Metin Yazir & Vanessa Gouch, Amira Campora or Damian & Nancy. Candles light up the dance hall at the final party on the last evening of the workshop, the stars are twinkling over the terrace. Tangueros from Perugia, sometimes even Florence and Rome find their way to the umbrian mountains to participate, dance and join the party.

If you want more than „just“ dancing Tango you can go for long walks in the midst of olive groves and blooming gorse. Or you have a cappuccino in the little bar in Castel Rigone, 4 kilometers away from the center, with a nice view of the Lago di Trasimeno down in the valley. And culture everywhere you look. Perugia is near and another must is Assisi. Or rather Arezzo or Siena? Or you rather find yourself a cosy place in the garden and enjoy the sun. The cat chases a grasshopper, the dog get their tender loving care. It’s too nice just sitting around being lazy, when the light wind carries away the summer heat.