Tango floorcraft

Floorcraft & etiquette

At our Milongas we want everyone to enjoy an evening of dancing, so you are asked to respect the best standards of floorcraft and consideration for other dancers.

The dancing is salon style. Eton milongas are not suitable for people who want to perform Boleos, Ganchos and show moves in the middle of the floor.

We expect everyone to follow these rules:

Please do:
	Try to use the 'Cabeceo' to request & accept dances. 'Merge' into the line of dance without interrupting other dancers. Keep a constant flow of movement around the dance floor. Dance in a constant lane around the edge of the dance floor. Keep your distance to the couple in front, and avoid overtaking. Apologise briefly if you bump into other dancers. Aim to dance with one partner for each 'Tanda' of 3 or 4 tracks. Leave the dance floor during the “Cortina” between Tandas.

Please don't:
	Step or travel against the line of dance. Dance in the middle of the floor. Dance in one spot and obstruct the line of dance. Use steps or movements that risk kicks or collisions. Stop during the dance to chat. Make sudden changes of direction or change lanes. Use excessive space with show moves. Teach each other steps. Stand or sit obstructing the dance floor. Walk across the dance floor.

Useful confirmation of Tango etiquette is here...

And there's a good explanation about floorcraft here...

If you do not respect these rules then you may be asked to leave the milonga. See our terms & conditions.

Examples

This photo of a Tea dance at Eton shows how it should be done:

Perfick!

This photo of an Eton Milonga shows other examples of floorcraft:

It's a busy floor, but there is a line of 8 couples dancing around the outer edge of the floor (red line):

There's also a 2nd line of 4 couples dancers in 'lane 2' (yellow line)

A cunning couple have also found some space left free by the other couples 'cutting' the corner:

Tthere is a space in lane 2 that is available to the dancers to the left and couples out of shot at the bottom of the picture:

terms & conditions