photo by Zhu Yunxiao
photo by Zhu Yunxiao
PRELUDE
The first Lille tango festival welcomes you through River Tango and Nuestro Tango Lille.
These two associations, blending experience with charm, have joined forces to offer you an exceptional weekend experience!
With 15 hours of workshops covering many themes to deepen your tango, from the fundamentals to the specificities of each role, you will be able to perfect your techniques so that no tanda is inaccessible to you. More than 16 hours of music, masterful demonstrations, DJs to die for, and exhibitors to perfect your style. The evenings and workshops take place in a vast parquet room of 300 square meters to allow you to dance at your ease.
For our first edition, the maestros Leo and Eugenia and Maximiliano and Paloma come to the capital of Flanders to reveal their secrets and their finely chiseled techniques. So let's take advantage of it and dance, too, magical tandas, the kind that leave you dreaming long after the last note has died away...
photo by Laurent Destur
the organizers
NUESTRO TANGO LILLE
RIVERTANGO
ALEXANDRE
MILAGROS
GAELLE
MELESIO
Friday September 27
Saturday September 28
CALENDAR and location
The festival takes place at the Ibis Styles Lille Neuville-en-Ferrain hotel.
The Milongas and workshops take place in the hotel’s 300 square meter reception room with parquet flooring.
The bar and restaurant, along with a terrace featuring a swimming pool (exclusively for room guests), are conveniently located just across from the dance hall.
Additionally, the rooms on the upper floors offer the convenience of resting, changing, and putting on your shoes without ever needing to step outside. Now that's true comfort!
“Milonga de Bienvenida” 8pm to 2am
DJ Milagros
Workshop A -- 11h / 12h30
Workshop B -- 14h / 15h30
Workshop C -- 16h / 17h30
“Milonga de Gala” 7:30 pm to 2 am
DJ Lucas Malec
with a magical demo from our two maestro couples.
Sunday September 29
Workshop D -- 11h / 12h30
Workshop E -- 13h30/ 15h
“Milonga de Despedida” 3pm - 7pm
DJ Melesio
- They won the 2nd place in 2007 at the World Tango Championship in Buenos Aires and the 1st place in 2008 at the Trex Games TAFISA World Competition in South Korea.
- They are members of AMBCTA - Association of Teachers, Dancers and Choreographers of Argentine Tango, in Buenos Aires - Argentina
Discover us
When a couple's love is seen on the dance floor...
THE MASTERS
Leo Calvelli & Eugenia Usandivaras
Metz - France
- In 2005, they created and directed their own show, Conceptango, which premiered in December of the same year in Toledo, Spain, featuring seven dance couples.
- They also established and successfully managed what became the most renowned milonga in Spain, La Milonga de Cha-3 in Madrid, from 1997 to 2006.
- In September 2019, they were invited to perform at the Lucerne International Classical Music Festival in Switzerland.
- In 2021, they performed Piazzolla in the Open Air with the Swiss-Italian Orchestra of Lugano.
- Currently, they have formed the company Conexión Tango.
- Additionally, they performed with the acclaimed star Guillermo Fernandez and later created a show with the vocalist titled Conexión Piazzolla Tango.
photo by Alx.
Milagros Herrera
THE DJS
DJ Milonga de Bienvenida on Fridays from 8:00 p.m. to 2:00 a.m.
Milagros, originally from Argentina, has a deep passion for tango. She is constantly studying different eras and orchestras to create milonga sets that transport you on a journey from the origins on the banks of the Rio de la Plata to the present day. Tango is a narrative, at times revolutionary and poetic, with lyrics that recount the epic story of a people and an unparalleled wave of migration. As a DJ, Milagros aims to capture the traditional essence of a diverse culture and weave these stories into the tandas, preserving their meaning and soul.
Join us for a milonga filled with sublime emotions and let yourself be immersed in the stories of South America.
THE DJS
Lucas Malec
DJ Milonga de Gala on Saturday from 7:30 pm to 2 am
Lucas is a dancer, musician and teacher. From Buenos Aires, he moved to Amsterdam where he obtained a Master's degree in Composition at the Conservatory and hosted the milonga La Yumba every week. He adheres to a "social tango culture" and creates in his tanda composition, a bridge between what we can express with words and what can only be felt in the flesh.
Come and shiver to his best tanda compositions, let yourself be carried away by the emotion...
We present to you: Lucas Malec!
photo by Laurent Destur
THE DJS
Melesio Quijada
DJ Milonga de Despedida on Sunday 3pm to 7pm
Venezuelan by birth and at heart, Melesio possesses a Latin temperament and a wealth of talents, each honed with great care. Though trained as a scientist, his passion for music and dance has been a lifelong affair. The political upheaval in his homeland led him to Argentina, where he immersed himself in the rich culture of tango, learning from the very best. Melesio is not only a musician, singer, and accomplished dancer but also a skilled cook and an indispensable DJ. Come and experience the flavors of his music, infused with the essence of adventure, travel, exile, and nostalgia, and delight in every tanda he carefully curates for you.
We can't get enough!
the workshops
SATURDAY
A2: Solo follower: Autonomy
Discover how proper heel support and relaxed hips help you maintain balance, ensuring a strong axis that allows you to dance effortlessly with any leader, even during complex movements
(All levels)
A1: Solo Leader: Enrosques forward and backward
Channel the power of circular movements and perform your enrosques with fluidity, applying the leading techniques mastered in Argentina.
(Intermediate Level)
11h / 12h30
B2: Musicality
Rhythm and musical phrases to facilitate choreographic composition on the dance floor
(Intermediate Level)
B1: Grounding and Density
Grounding and density in steps and pivots. Increase your connection to the floor in your dance to ensure a more comfortable embrace while moving.
(All levels)
14h / 15h30
C2: Fundamentals: Ochos
Front and back ochos as essential building blocks in modern tango
(All levels)
C1: Tango Stage
From the embrace to the spotlight, elevate your movements for a captivating tango performance. Create unforgettable magic on stage!
(Intermediate - Advanced Level)
16h / 17h30
Sunday
D1: Vals: boleos within the Vals
Master the techniques and energies for various types of boleos, and learn how to seamlessly integrate them into the unique musicality of the vals without disturbing other dancers
(Intermediate/advanced level)
D2: The colgada in the tango salon
Effortlessly Integrating Colgada into Social Tango: The connection with Different Partners
(Intermediate level)
11h / 12h30
E1: Complexing the fundamentals.
Challenge giros, sacadas, and sweeps to enhance their intensity.
(Intermediate Level - Advanced)
13h30/ 15h
E2 : Milonga
Giros and Firuletes in Milonga: Mastering the Art of Circularity
(All levels)
Full pass
Take part in this entire exceptional weekend with us!!
5 workshops (one choice from each letter A, B, C, D and E
3 entries: Milonga de Bienvenida on Friday, Milonga de Gala on Saturday with demos from our maestro couples and Milonga de Despedida on Sunday
Day Pass
Saturday Pass: 3 workshops (one of your choice from each of the letters A, B and C) and entry to the Saturday Gala Milonga with demos from our maestro couples
Sunday pass: 2 workshops and entry to the Despedida milonga
PASS reservation
Milongas Pass
Includes all 3 dancing entrances!
“Milonga de Bienvenida” on Friday “Milonga de Gala” on Saturday with demos from our master couples “Milonga de despedida” on Sunday
ACCOMMODATION
The hotel offers suites or double rooms (with either a double bed or twin beds), and reservations include breakfast and access to the hotel's exquisite swimming pool.
Book soon, as the Paralympic Games are expected to draw large crowds to this luxury hotel.
address
cONTACT
organizers email: info@lilletangofestival.fr
After the festival?
associations
From 7:30 p.m. following the Sunday despedida milonga, you can go to Lille Grand Place to dance outside at the Vieille Bourse until 11 p.m.
Thanks
This festival is made possible by the many speakers and individuals who generously offered their services, time, and expertise. We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to them (the list is not exhaustive—there are many of you who help us keep the spirit of tango alive in Lille!).
Elise, Léa, Josua, Sofiane, Jordane, Christine, Christophe, Margaux, Tatiana, Delphine, Alex, Aline, Karina, Laurent and so many others whom we send our warmest regards.
