6:30 – 7:30 pm Chamuyo and
7:30 – 9:30 pm Milonga

There is so much more to Tango than just dancing! Kick off the evening with a free discussion group (chamuyo). Christy and Darren will discuss the music, dance and culture of Tango, and maybe even some stories from her trips to Buenos Aries. Bring your questions and enjoy this informative chat.

Continue the evening with great food, drink, music, and most of all dancing. No cover for this social dancing event at the Higher Groundz Family Coffee House, 3230 Broad St., Suite 130, San Luis Obispo (Broad and Orcutt).

Saturday, November 18^th

2:00 – 3:30 pm Follower's Technique (all levels)

Basics to Boleos, all levels welcome... including leaders!. Christy will share with you her tips for the perfect walk, cruzada, forward ocho, back ocho, molinete and boleo in both Salon and Close Embrace styles of Argentine Tango. Across the floor and partner exercises are used to practice specific techniques for each of these fundamental elements. Leaders are encouraged to attend this workshop… as all experienced leaders will tell you…the key to being a good leader is knowing what you are leading!

Christy & Darren will share with you specific techniques for leading various boleos plus great patterning to include boleos in your dancing in a natural and musical way that will entice any partner to the dance floor! This is a great workshop for followers to practice boleos. Christy will offer one on one tips for making your boleos perfect!

Just a few giros and syncopations will give you a beautiful Argentine Vals it’s really very simple! Christy & Darren will take you thru patterning that you can later improvise to create a musical and satisfying Vals for you and your partner every time!

Sunday, November 19^th

12:00 – 1:30 pm Leader’s Technique for Salon Style (all levels welcome)

Darren shares with you his tips for a great Salon Style Argentine Tango. Across the floor and various other exercises will allow you to focus on footwork, torque, alignment, contra body movement, etc. This workshop will help you develop “muscle memory” for these skills so that you can later focus on your partner. Skills include various pivots, enrosque, sacadas, lapis, blocks and paradas, barridas, ganchos, enganges, etc.

Basics for Close Embrace Argentine Tango -- Christy & Darren highly recommend this workshop for everyone! Even experienced close embrace dancers will benefit from Christy and Darren’s specific techniques and work on connection with a partner. The workshop starts with posture and embrace specifically for this style of dancing, developing connection with your partner, and proceeds to very basic patterning in an improvisation mode for a complete close embrace dance.

Dancing with D’Arienzo -- Juan D’Arienzo was the “King of the Rhythm” and his style of music is what brought people by the hundreds to the dance halls of Buenos Aires in the Golden Era of Tango in the 30’s and 40’s. Today dancers especially enjoy the close embrace style of Argentine Tango dancing to the music of D’Arienzo which allows them to use simple movements to play with the fast rhythmic beats. Christy & Darren will awaken you to the joys of dancing with D’Arienzo!

San Luis Obispo Odd Fellow's Hall

Cost: $25 per person per class. Register for multiple classes at once and save: 3 for $70, 4 for $85, 5 for $95, or all get all 6 for $100. One-hour private classes available for $80 per couple, and one-hour semi-private classes for $160 for upto 8 people. Please contact Rich & Leslie to schedule private and semi-private classes.

Sunday, November 19^th

7:00 – 9:30 pm Milonga

Social dancing at the Atascadero Lake Pavilion, 9315 Pismo Ave., Atascadero. It's a large space with an awesome floor. Dance to your favorite tango tunes provided by Jack & Willow overlooking the lake. Bring a snack to share if you please, but sorry! no alcohol at this venue. $5 donation requested. Hope to see you there! From SLO, exit 101 at Santa Rosa; go over the freeway (headed towards ocean); continue on Santa Rosa until you see the Lake on your right; turn right on Marchant; follow Marchant along the lake and you'll see the Pavilion. Make a right into the parking lot just past the Pavilion.

Monday, November 20^th

7:00 – 8:00 pm Review and
8:00 - 10:00 pm Practica (all levels) at SLO Vets' Hall

Christy is staying Monday to help us solitify the weekend's material with a special review and practice, $15. Christy will review the material covered over the weekend and answer questions. You will also have plenty of time to practice and have opportunities to receive corrections from this expert teacher. This takes the time and place of our regularly scheduled Monday night class and practica at the SLO Vets' Hall.

Christy Coté has been dancing, choreographing and teaching professionally for more than 25 years. For the past 11 years, she has devoted her love of dance to Argentine Tango becoming one of San Francisco's most respected dancers and teachers. Christy co-hosts San Francisco’s longest running milonga, the Mariposa Argentine Tango Club now in it’s 11^th year and has been featured locally on KVTU's Segment 2 Report with Bob MacKenzie, KPIX/Channel 5 Evening Magazine and nationally in Dance Spirit Magazine.

As the creator and director of the Argentine Tango program at San Francisco's popular Metronome Dance Center, she oversees and teaches a full schedule of group and private classes, workshops, practicas and Milongas. Christy's teaching method has been published in the Argentine Tango Manual by Dance Vision and is complimented by a series of 20 instructional DVDs by Christy & George Garcia of Honolulu.

Christy is also a founding member of the all female tango company, Tango Con*Fusión. You can catch Christy and the other dancers of Tango Con*Fusión in Leading Ladies of Tango December 13-16, 2006 at the Herbst Theater in San Francisco.

Darren Lees lives in San Diego and has been dancing Argentine tango for 5 years and for the past 2 years he and Christy have enjoyed traveling together, teaching at various tango communities including San Francisco to Boston and at festivals such as Reno´s Tango Brujo, TangoFest Maui, and on the Tango at Sea Cruise.

Christy and Darren perform regularly with MonTango, Tango No. 9 and produce monthly Tango shows at San Francisco's Peña Pacha Mama restaurant. They also choreograph for and perform with their professional performance group, The LiberTango Dancers who were selected from over 150 auditioning groups to perform in the 2006 San Francisco Ethnic Dance Festival.

Christy & Darren look forward to returning to San Luis Obispo once again to share their love of this wonderful dance!

Christy’s web site is at www.ChristyCote.com.