OCTOBER 15, 2023
DON'T MISS THIS - REGISTER NOW!
Karen Jaffe & Tate DiChiazza will be in Knoxville for only one special day, so don't miss out!
From the Bottom to the Top
This workshop is for all those who wish to have a stronger base
and from there be able to build their dance with more confidence and communication
Understanding the function of foundations and working on them
enables us to build a strong house on top of them.
2:00pm-3:30pm
Communication/Connection
Finding the clearest ways to communicate and from a place of empathy
is perhaps one of the most complex things in this dance.
In this workshop oriented for all levels, we will explore the kindest forms of communication,
how we can ask, suggest and how to open up to perhaps the most important thing in all communication,
which is being able to listen to the other.
4:00pm-5:30pm
Practilonga
5:30pm
The Double S Wine Bar
SUNDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2023
$25/workshop or $40 for both
Tate ("TAH-tey") Di Chiazza - A native of Buenos Aires, Tate has studied, danced, taught, and performed tango in its global epicenter for decades. He has also traveled extensively around the world both as an instructor and as a performer. Most notably, from 2002 - 2009 he toured with the famous show "Tanguera." Tate is excited to expand his teaching practice to include the southeastern United States and also to continue his work and partnership with Karen Jaffe. www.tatetango.com
Karen Jaffe lives near Asheville, NC. In her 20+ years of tango she has supported dancers by offering weekly classes, social dances, and organizing dozens of events. Karen has also traveled extensively to continue her own education and to teach Argentine tango, the dance to which she has devoted her artistic life. www.tangogypsies.com
Together, Karen & Tate have over 40 years’ experience dancing, teaching, and performing Argentine tango.
Karen's & Tate's Teaching Philosophy
Karen’s and Tate’s teaching philosophy is based on the ideal of being “co-creative.” Co-creative dancers are simultaneously independent and yet connected; they create the dance together. In order to achieve this ideal, Karen and Tate rely especially on two concepts: active following and tension & release.
Active following is essential to a co-creative dance. An active follower interprets the music through her body, at times independently from the leader. Within a solid base of structure, technique, and timing, the energy flows freely through the couple, generating comfort, connection, and clarity.
Also essential to this philosophy is the concept of tension & release. When dancers incorporate tension & release into their technique, kinetic energy ebbs and flows organically between them, allowing the dance to come from a very quiet place and yet explode at moments, always returning to an attentive, subtle baseline.
Classes with Karen and Tate are relaxed, fun, and exploration-based, yet always grounded in technique. Karen and Tate may use a movement or sequence as a framework for a technique or concept, but the true focus is the natural flow of energy from lead to follow… all with a healthy dose of playfulness!
Once students grasp the mechanics of a given movement, the focus turns to how the movement is executed, the quality of the connection and communication, the clarity of the movement, and most importantly how dancers experience the movement. In the end, this is a social dance, so having a good experience is paramount no matter what movement dancers create together.
This approach is modern, complex, and evolving, but it has deep roots in traditional tango. Leaders and followers have distinct roles, yet they share many aspects of fundamental technique. They collaborate and negotiate from moment to moment, reading each other, redirecting the flow of energy between them, understanding the perfectly imperfect nature of the dance.
KAREN Jaffe
TATE DiChiazza
Register now for Tate and Karen's workshops on Sunday, October 15!
Single workshop:
"From the Bottom to the Top"
(2:00pm-3:30) $25
Single workshop: "Communication/Connection"
(4:00pm-5:30pm) $25
Both workshops plus practicalonga: $40