Not everyone is dancing

An unusual conflict smolders in St. Petersburg. In his center Argentinean tango: while some dancers are fighting for the right to be paired with a person of any gender, others consider this to be undermined by all the foundations

Another direction

In the darkened hall on the second floor of the old pre -revolutionary building in the center of St. Petersburg, tango dance. The evening Milonga has just begun, but several pairs are already gliding on a perfect parquet. There are only girls in them, all with their eyes closed and the most concentrated faces.

Short tandels (blocks of musical compositions. - Approx . TD ) replace each other, there are more and more dancing. Tangeros hug, drink champagne and go to the ronda (circular movement along the dance floor. - Approx. TD ), periodically changing partners and changing roles. Now ordinary couples are also dancing next to me, but among them one stands out: two tall men. One of them performs incredibly fast and exact movements with long legs - in stilettos.

The same-sex couples of dancers, women-leading and male entertainers are increasingly found on quite traditional milongs. This is a separate direction of the Argentine dance-Quir-Tango.

"Half of the dance"

Quir-Tango or Tango Open-Role (open roles) arose in Hamburg at the end of the last century. In 2001, the first International Quirgo-Tangu festival was also there, at which any participant could dance in any role-the host or the Vedue-regardless of gender, appearance and other accessories. At the same time, all other features of tango-ethics and dance itself are preserved.

“Now people come to learn to dance, and they don’t even have thoughts that only one role can be taught,” says Natalia Merkulova, teacher of Quir-Tango (Merk). “Recently, one boy from the younger group asked:“ How can you learn only one role? This is half the dance. ”

SANKTER PETERSTORY. During tango photos: Ksenia Ivanova for TD SANKTER PETERSTORY. Open evening Quir-Tango at the School of Social Dancing School Open Roles Open Role Dance Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

The experience of dance in two roles, according to Merck and other tangeros, really gives a more complete idea of ​​him. In addition, almost all teachers of Argentinean tango, whether men or women, as a rule, teach both roles. So Quir-Tango is not a breakdown of foundations and not a practice aimed exclusively at LGBT+ people, the creator of the Queer Dance Club dance school Marina Stepanova is sure.

"Do not separate"

Merk and Stepanova are pioneers of Russian Quir-Tanggo. They joined him at the beginning of the tenths in the Petersburg club "Malevich", where ten years ago the first Open-Role tango studio opened ten years ago.

“I used to be engaged in various dances, and Tango wanted to dance, but I didn’t even think about going to a regular school, because I was obviously embarrassed by the patriarchal surroundings,” says Merk. “But as soon as I found out about the lessons in Malevich, I immediately went to study, and since then I’m in the tango.”

SANKTER PETERSTORY. Open evening Quir-Tango at the School of Social Dancing School Open Roles Open Role Dance Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

Merk gives lessons in the feminist recreation center "Rosa", attracts new dancers in tango, participates in thematic discussions on Facebook, dances on Russian and foreign milongs and tango festivals. Unlike Marina Stepanova, who founded the closed Queer Dance Club, Merck set himself the task of not separating from the traditional tango community, but to join it as much as possible-“undermine conventionality”.

Simultaneously with Merk Quir-Tango, Tangero and teacher Otar Bagaturia introduced into the urban dance environment. According to him, they purposefully went to city events and danced in the same -sex pairs, although at first they looked at them "as at full freaks."

“Before coming to the tango, I generally seemed to be in the closet,” says Bagaturia. - And when he began to go [in “Malevich”], I realized that this is a space in which I could be myself. And if someone says that this is bad, then he is wrong. ”

Sanct-Petersburg, Galya Lurie dances tango with Merk photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD SANKTTERSTERS, Merck dancing with Galya Lurie Tango Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

Around the same time, Quir-Tangeros began to constantly visit city milongs and marathons, and in 2014 Merk, Otar Bagaturia and Yana Khalilova held the first St. Petersburg Quir-Tang Salida. True, at the moment, only Merck constantly lives from the organizers of the festival in Russia. Otar, along with his tango partner and husband Mikhail Kapitsky, emigrated to Israel, Yana Khalilova moved to Germany. But None of them abandoned Quir-Tango.

"All men are scared away"

In 2016, the main star of the Salida festival was the Brazilian Tangero Lucas Fernandez.

He dances in the role of a led and in high -heeled shoes. At the festival, this reacted to the usual phenomenon, but when the Brazilian came to the citywide milonga, the organizer ran up to him and demanded to immediately remove the heels, with a laugh recalls Otar Bagaturia: “I motivated this that he is now scaring all the men now.”

SANKTER PETERSTORY. Open evening Quir-Tango at the School of Social Dancing School Open Roles Open Role Dance Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

In December 2018, the Tango Days festival was held in St. Petersburg. Hundreds of tangeros gathered on the Grand Mill, on the stage-the Italian tango-organ "Hyperion", in a word-a real holiday. But already at the beginning of Milongi, the director of the EL Abrazo school and the organizer of the festival Viktor Stenin noticed a one -sex pair on the dance floor and brought it out.

“Of course, we do not go to Milongs in El Abrazo and similar clubs, because we know their policy very well,” says Quir-Tanger Galya Lurie. -But in this case, it was a large citywide event, and several bicarry dancers still decided to come, but it is impossible to endlessly engage in self-censorship. True, it was not possible to fully dance with each other for the girls - very soon they were literally taken out of the dance floor, asking not to do this anymore, and did not even return the money for the ticket. ”

The next year, the organizers of the festival have already indicated in his rules the “absolutely traditional format”, which, in their opinion, means that a man leads in a dance, and a woman follows - and nothing else.

SANKTER PETERSTORY. Merk teaches Gale Lurie Tango Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD SANKTER PETERSTORY. Merk teaches Gale Lurie Tango Photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

“Yes, I and my colleagues believe that tango is a dance of men and women. Why do we think so? We were taught so, and we believe that this is good and correct <...>, - wrote Viktor Stenin. - Well, for example, because tango is like the birth of a child. It can happen in a man and a woman. Learn the materiel if you have questions, and you will be happy. If you think this is not so, then I agree with you too. I respect your right to have my own rules. Just not on our milongs. "

Russian activists translated the published rules into other languages ​​and sent them to the invited stars - the Argentinean DJs and the Hyperion orchestra. The DJs sided with the Quire community and refused to participate in the festival on such conditions. One of them, Guillermo Monti, said that “good rules are Cabesheo (a method of invitation to tango.-Approx. TD ), respect, Ronda, perhaps a dress code, but not discrimination, which is completely unacceptable.” “Hyperion” came, referring to a difficult touring schedule, and invited Quir-Tangeros to attend his concerts in Moscow and Yekaterinburg, on which there were no similar rules.

“There are rules that cannot be installed,” Galya Lurie is sure. “You can’t build a private kindergarten and allow it to beat children.”

"Dense forest"

No less absurd Quir-Tank-activists also consider the proposals of supporters of the Tango Days to visit their Quirry, leaving traditional traditionalists.

“From the Quir-Milongi, unlike homophobic, they do not drive anyone out for dancing not in such a couple,” continues Lurie. - This is a space that everyone can come into. You can come to Milon and dance only in a diverse pair, no problems. ”

Despite the battle on Facebook and the refusal of the famous DJs to come to the event, the Tango Days themselves in 2019 went quietly: Quir-Tangeros simply boycotted them. However, the scandal attracted the attention of the media and forced the organizers to defend themselves on their pages on social networks.

SANKTER PETERSTORY. Merck shows the correct setting of the head during tango photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD SANKTER PETERSTORY. Michael Kotin after tango photo: Ksenia Ivanova for TD

“Until last year, there was a feeling that there was great progress, because almost all the milongs are already ok, no one’s jaws, no one faints at the sight of a same -sex couple. But when this happens, you understand that the dense forest is still. In the head of people, absolutely everything is mixed, and the fact that somewhere there they do not react, does not mean that they do not discuss you among themselves. It was unpleasant to realize this, ”says Merck.

According to her, people who come up to the organizers and say that with the Quires “something must be done”, and the organizers can ultimately listen to these voices, because they do not want to lose their visitors, are already appearing on her.

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The material uses links to publications of social networks Instagram and Facebook, as well as their names are mentioned. These web resources belong to Meta Platforms Inc. - It is recognized in Russia as an extremist organization and is prohibited.

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