Etiquette & Vocabulary

We've included information below that we feel appropriately describe the proper etiquette involved in Argentine Tango dancing, as well as a survey of the vocabulary that dancers will encounter while studying this dance.

• www.tangomuse.com/TangoManners.html
• home.europa.com/%7Ewalsup/tango/faq.html#etiquette

Cabeceo "Eye Game" :

a way of "connecting" with a tango partner by locking eyes from across a room. If a woman catches a man's glance, she can either acknowlege his eye contact and meet him on the dance floor, or she may turn away thereby discreetly saying "no thank you." This saves face for the guy and allows the woman to choose with whom she would like to dance.

Here's a comment (Sept. 12, 2005) by Tom Stermitz of Denver on his experiences in Buenos Aires:
"The cabeceo is a preferred method of asking for a partner in Buenos Aires. This is aided by culture and tradition. Walking into a restaurant or even the subway in Buenos Aires, all eyes jump up for a moment to welcome the newcomer.

The eye game is romantic and practical. Electric when it works. It saves face so a gentleman never gets shut-down publicly, and the women can safely refuse to dance with poor dancers, giving them more power to choose their own partners.

In the US catching someone's eye for a conversation is common enough in the singles bar scene, but it is not the easy, friendly, teasing, seductive game it becomes in a milonga in Buenos Aires. The US "distance of privacy" is much different than in Latin cultures. N. Americans look away too quickly, causing Latins to think we are cold; maybe N. Americans interpret that Latin eye- distance as being too forward (un-private, discourteous?).

My experiences with the Cabeceo:

The first time the cabeceo really worked for me was at Regin (same location as the current & renovated El Beso). It was electrifying. On came the waltzes, and I leaned forward to catch they eye of an attractive young lady. She leaned forward at the same time and ZAP!! We had a dance!"