The tango face

The tango face comes late in the tango development, I'll try to characterise it.

The talk with the mouth phase
Tango is little more than a dialogue between two partners. Absolute beginners take this very literally and it's a common feature to hear them exchanging views on what they do for a living, where they live or where they are from. It's a mixed face of relaxation and not really understanding what they got themselves into, typical of someone giving their date a lift one day after getting the driving license (ie danger on the road/dancefloor)

The feet attraction phase
When a tanguero starts, it's almost 100% sure that he will be trying to walk looking to the partner's feet. It makes absolute sense for the beginner, he doesn't want to step on the partner because he wants the partner to dance with him again. It's just tango survival at a beginner level! However, the crude harsh reality is that looking to the partner's feet is a big mistake and worse than closing your eyes. You get all confused by the fact that your partner is doing the complete opposite of you're doing. But when you're a beginner, it is not that obvious.

The sorry phase
Sorry phase starts right at the beginning. But if in the beginning this is obscured by obvious reasons to ask for forgiveness, now it is just annoying. Looking to the brighter side, the tanguero is actually admitting that he is wrong, which demonstrates at least some sort of "looking-into-the-mirror-and-seeing-what-is-there" attitude. Or not.

The scrunchy face phase
After some practice, lots of being told off by teachers about this feet obsession, the tanguero starts to let his eyes actually look into the dance floor. But this tanguero is still in a learning phase. Concilliating movement, coordination with navigational skills is very very difficult and as a results he/she starts making funny faces everytime a more daring move is made. Biting the tongue is a very common feature but scrunching the forehead, opening mouth or adding sound effects to the move are other features that are quite common.

The limbo phase
(also called the growing pains)
The tanguero has done the beginner, improver and intermediate modules and has (in his mind) depleted all movements. Until this point that tanguero could see his progress week by week but now that the standard "moves" have gone, he feels he is learning nothing. This is the fase where the tango face starts to blossom. But like everything in nature, it needs the appropriate conditions to do so. Good teaching, good attitude and realisation that instead of learning moves every week the tanguero has to work on his technique are indispensable requirements.

The Nirvana phase
This accomplished tanguero has learnt how to control his body and his partner's in favour of the music. He dominates the moves very well and is keen on going back to the basics. When dancing he evokes a face that seems to be many millions of light years away from the dance floor. The tanguero has learnt to focus on the dance. He may look very serious but in fact, he is enjoying every little bit of the dance. Occasionally, this tanguero may disguise a smile when something goes unexpectedly right or wrong but that will be coated by a glow of serenity and control. This is the tanguero that everyone wants to dance with. Not the end product but close to it.