Fancy Footwork: Judging Tango

BUENOS AIRES, Argentina, Aug. 24, 2007 — -- How does one judge a tango dance performance? What does one look for to distinguish one couple from another in an event where differences would seem, at least to the untrained eye, to be subtle at best?

ABC News spoke with some of the scores of judges who will grade the dancers at V Tango World Championships in Buenos Aires (www.tangodata.gov.ar), as well as with some of the participants to try and understand what differentiates the champions from the also-rans.

One may think of dance contest judges or scenes from the 1969 movie "They Shoot Horses Don't They." Also, the cartoon "Popeye" had Wimpy as a dance contest judge who, between hamburgers, pulled a lever to open a trap door and whisk away the losing participants. None of that goes on in Buenos Aires this week.

The judges here are not allowed to talk specifically about the competition and they generally don't like to talk to the press during the event. However one judge, Jorge Firpo spoke with ABC News prior to the ballroom semi-finals.

"I judge emotion, sensitivity and musicality," he said. "By musicality, I mean the couple's rhythm and dancing in harmony with the music. I also judge the interactions between the couples. Technique is okay but almost everyone at this level have the technical end down pat. I look more for people who transmit the sentiment of tango."

Can it be a foreigner? Firpo was asked.

"Absolutely. Tango is an international phenomenon, it's universal."

Firpo should know, as he has danced in dozens of countries over the last three decades including extended periods of teaching and performing tango in Japan and Canada.

Other judges who spoke with ABC News, but anonymously, gave the following insight:

"I look for the compatibility, the smoothness, the communication between the dancers which to me is the most important aspect. It is important that I don't perceive two individuals but rather one unified body. Any division or dissent in that unified body hurts the way I judge that couple."

"Presentation is very important in the stage category. As an example, there was a Colombian couple in the stage competition the other day and she was wearing a very low cut blouse and a very skimpy skirt. This is generally a no-no with judges. Tango is a very sensual dance, but it is also a subtle art form."

"I want to see a couple who doesn't show a nervous edge, yet I don't want to see a happily smiling face. Tango is dignified, not humorous. I want to see shoulders back when upright. I never want to see anyone slouching. And the clothing has to be impeccable. Not too tight, not too loose -- just right."

In the five year history of the Buenos Aires World Championship, there has been some controversy regarding the judges and their potential interest in selecting a winner. The judges are all from Argentina and many of them own or teach in local schools. Oftentimes, the winners have come from these same schools.

"We have heard the criticisms of the judges, so now we have a system in the five- and seven-judge panels where the highest and lowest scores are not computed in the final result," said Carolina Simon, the director of the tango championship. "The winners have to go through a rigorous process where they are judged by, at the very least, 27 experts."

Jose Vicente Damiani, a scholarly expert on tango with National Academy of Tango (www.anacdeltango.org.ar), believes the judges are fair in their decisions.

"Like any other competition, the judging is subjective," he said. "But basically, the judges will use simple criteria like elasticity and pirouettes in the stage category and long, graceful steps in the dance hall events.

"As to whether there is a bias towards the local dancers, I say no," he added. "Last year, a Colombian couple won, a Russian couple would have won if the man didn't take a spill doing one-too-many pirouettes. A couple of years ago, a Hungarian couple and two South Koreans came in second and third. The judges are experts chosen by the national tango dancers and choreographers association. Most of them go overseas and teach as much outside of the country as in Argentina. That bias just doesn't exist."

The dancers don't necessarily feel that way.

Kenneth Fraser, 53, of Stuttgart, Germany believes the organizers have to begin putting foreigners on judging panels.

"It would just make things so much more logical," he said. "You would take the doubt away and as this contest keeps growing -- its grown tremendously in the last few years -- they will have to do that."

Another European couple complained that they thought local judges looked for certain stylized flairs that Argentines tend to do more than the more steady, sedate European style.

A young Colombian couple took another approach. They danced in the stage category dressed in everyday garb, taboo for any local judge. They lost, but commented that it didn't really matter: "We danced dressed the way we wanted to."