Dave at the Grand Milonga at Seattle Tango Magic 2009 with the live band in the background

Now and then a tanguera comes along and captures my Soul with her sensual movement, flowery fragrance, cuddly embrace, radiant aliveness and childlike playfulness.  On Saturday in Seattle such a scenario shadowed me twice in succession.  At the alternative milonga I felt freed where I could play with the music in the ways I so enjoy.  Each follow allowed me to express my joy and impishness.

And at some point I cabaceoed a woman that I had desired to dance with.  When I watched her earlier, I felt that I could easily trance, laugh and walk in great delight with her.  Within 2 phrases of moving with her in my embrace, I could feel a connection lock in where I knew I would go to the place of trance, connection and oneness that I hunger for.

We danced several tandas over the course of the milonga, and had our last dance of the milonga with “Stairway to Heaven”.  As the music faded I acknowledged to myself I just experienced one of the best dances ever.  I thought the tanda was over and I offered a deep sigh and thanks.  I had had a TANGASM.  I hadn’t had time to revel in my tangasm, for another song came on, and a woman hurriedly approached me.   I had wanted to dance with this particular tanguera since I met her at the houseboat pre-milonga party.

Soon after we started, she bewildered me by moving in ways I had never experienced.  The energy of desire and playfulness she expressed went beyond any other dancer to date.  I shook my head several times in my attempt to contain energy she summoned.  By the end of that one song,  I realized that was one of the top dances I ever had.  She had blown me away.

The stars seemed to have aligned with me for that milonga as I was left speechless.  I went up to each of these two amazing tangueras and acknowledged how extraordinary the dances were for me.  To my incredulity they each reciprocated with an equal acknowledgement.  Wow!  I found it hard to believe that my experience of such amazing dances were shared.  Often the experience of a tanda is so different for each dancer, so I never assume my partner had a wonderful time even though I may have.

Dave at Seattle Tango Magic

Part of what made this milonga one of my best ever was how I danced only with those women I wanted to dance with.  I let my desire guide me in choosing who I would ask.  The connection I sensed with each woman greatly influenced my desire to choose to dance with them.

I do not always choose based on desire.  At times I have chosen dances based on past connection or the tanguera’s enthusiasm to dance with me.  When I choose based on desire in the moment, I notice how much better I dance, how much better the milonga is for me, and how much more I can give to the women I dance with.

And with this milonga, I experienced what I now call THE MAGIC OF ONE.  It appears that one individual has the power to make a milonga go from good to great or great to extraordinary.  With one particular tanguera, many of the milongas at the festival went from great to extraordinary.  Overall I had many great dances with so many wonderful tangueras!  Each tanguera was different in how they expressed and moved with me.  I delighted in each of their unique expressions.

My festival ended not with the last milonga, but by hanging out with this Magic of One tanguera for 7 hours at the Seattle airport.  For three of those hours we danced – I had my computer with all of my tango music, tango shoes and desire.  She had her tango shoes and desire.  We set up our milonga space in a hallway next to Starbucks.  The airport police used the corridor to go to their offices, and almost all smiled as they walked by our tango bubble.

Not all the magic of the Seattle Tango Festival has been shared- what transpired at the Salmon Bake deserves its own entry, for the MAGIC OF ONE expresses both the power of transcendent experiences in dancing with one individual and what a milonga space can create.  The Salmon Bake is the most magical of milonga spaces I ever danced in.