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Audience a conquest
in ‘Tango’s’ seduction

'Forever Tango': 7:30 p.m. today and Sunday; 8 p.m. tomorrow and Saturday; 2 p.m. Saturday and Sunday at Hawaii Theatre. Tickets $37.50 to $55. Call 526-4400.

By John Berger
Special to the Star-Bulletin

LIKE the song says, it takes two to tango, but when the two are doing it at the level seen in Luis Bravo's "Forever Tango," the dance takes on spiritual qualities that transcend pop cliches.

The essence of Tango Argentino lies in the fantasy of seduction, and the show presents it in a visual extravaganza that displays the power and majesty of the dance without resorting to smoke machines, lasers, or high decibel synthesized soundtracks. Anyone in town with an interest in dance should see this production in which seven couples compete to impress the audience with their variations on the basic seductive theme.

Most of the segments showcase individual couples; in that context the interweaving of seemingly effortless movement and sudden furious footwork is easy to appreciate. The bigger numbers are wondrous but there's so much going on that there's no way to catch everything with one viewing.

Add an excellent orchestra and singer Carlos Morel and "Forever Tango" is a fascinating and memorable experience.

Director Bravo's lighting and staging reflects the origins of Tango Argentino in a milieu similar to the "sporting house" scene that gave birth to American jazz. The overall ambience is dark. The lighting is stark. The men generally sullen and commanding. The women seductive and provocatively dressed. Black is the predominant color. Silver is a close second.

Carlos Gavito is the focal point of "El Suburbio," an early number that features the company in a stylized representation of the birth of Tango Argentino as a mode of creative expression and masculine competition among the malevos (street fighters) who practiced among or against themselves before setting out to impress the women working the bordellos and dance halls.

Jazz, R&B, rap and a long list of popular dances created by African-Americans were initially shunned as vulgar and crude in mainstream America. Tango Argentino was likewise considered vulgar and crude before the rhythm and romantic passion of the dance won over Argentine society and the world beyond.

None of this is explained in the "Forever Tango" program or in any form of narration on stage. What you and hear is literally all you get. The individuality of the couples and much of the meticulously precise footwork and split-second interaction between them is best appreciated by serious students of the dance but several segments stand out:

Miriam Larici and Cesar Coelho open and close the program with the show's most aerial and acrobatic performances.

Oscar Mandagaran and Natalia Hill impress with their performances overall. They finish their first number with a dramatic and potentially dangerous upside-down dip that has Mandagaran lifting Hill off her feet and holding her in his arms with her head inches from the floor.

Silver-haired and bearded, Gavito personifies the emotional undercurrents in Tango Argentino, and proves that age is nothing but a number, as he and Marcela Duran star in "El Abandono" and "La Conquista." Gavito is exquisitely expressive; his facial expressions and posture touch the heart in both numbers.

Luis Castro and Claudia Mendoza quickly become favorites in Act I with "El Humor" and outdo themselves with a piece titled "Luis 'Machito' Castro" in Act II. Tango performed as precise and graceful comedy? Believe it! Castro is a delightful study in attitude in Act I; he and Mendoza turn the seductive dance into a comic battle of the sexes in Act II.

Emotion, attitude and commanding physical presence are also key elements as Jorge Torres envelops Karina Piazza with seductive menace in "El Vampiro."

Music director Lisandro Adrover adds to the traditional ambience with an excellent orchestra of four bandoneons (think "small accordions"), violins, viola, bass, piano and keyboards. The bandoneons and strings dominate as they should, although pianist Fernando Marzan shares the spotlight with Adrover on one number.

Hardcore tango fans might ask for a little more tango and slightly shorter numbers by the orchestra, but the music is beautiful and Bravo's lighting adds to its dramatic impact.

Morel sings a pair of traditional Argentine ballads with impressive power, range and emotional presence. It would be nice if the program provided a synopsis of the songs' meaning, but Morel is memorable despite the language barrier.

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