Tango lessons get students ready for Regi Ball

   In the days leading up to Regimental Ball, students were treated to two nights of Argentinean Tango, an event put on by the Department of Modern Languages, according to a Norwich student.

            "In light of Hispanic Heritage Month, the International Studies program and Spanish professors brought the (musicians and dancers)," said Lisa Belanger, 20, a nursing major from Manchester, N.H.

            Argentinean Tango is a good way for students to experience a different culture. Students got a taste of a different type of dance.

             "The way they danced the tangos was different from the way we learned, and it gave us insight to the original form of the dance," said Kayla Weimert, 19, a civil-engineering and architecture major from Maryland.

            The two-night event was kicked off Thursday evening in Dole Auditorium with a concert of traditional Argentinean music and traditional dances.

            The musical group, called the Tami Tango Trio played traditional music that presented the couple with a variety of dances to perform. The music ranged from more jazzy tunes to more traditional tunes that one would expect to hear in a swanky tango lounge in Buenos Aires.

            The group also did a few improvisational pieces that added to the ambiance of a jazz lounge.

The dance couple performed many different tangos as well as some other traditional dances of Argentina. In addition to tango, they performed the Cuarteto and Chamame, which are also traditional Argentinean, dances.

            Students in the Spanish Department were required to go as an assignment, according to students. Though they were only required to stay for an hour, many stayed through the entire performance.

            The Ballroom Dancing Club, who has couples working toward competition in the spring, benefitted from the lesson.

 "We might be able to pull some things out of this (lesson) for competition" said Belanger.