Focus Tango Festival
Focus Tango Festival was the first event organised by the Focus Tango Foundation and took place 10 till 12th of June 2022, not long after the lifting of the restrictions due to the pandemic. It was a festive tango weekend targeted to experienced dancers, with three salons, 6 renowned dj’s, a dance couple with an international status, 4 workshops, special guests, a live performance and attention to the history of tango in Amsterdam. After two years of pandemic, It was very special to meet each other on the dance floor and to finally get to experience this special contact sport again.
Thursday the 9th of May 2024 it is 100 years ago that, after a ban that lasted 31 years, the first six permits for dance events in public space in Amsterdam, were granted. We see this historic fact as a milestone of the development of dance and tango in our capital and we want to celebrate this with a big century party, spread out in different events. Everyone is invited.
During the first edition of Focus Tango Festival in the Posthoornkerk in Amsterdam, we gave visitors a taste of what is coming. We gave the more recent tango history attention with a talk by Wouter Brave, one of the tango pioneers in the Netherlands, who shared about his own journey in tango. The revival in the 80’s forms the basis of the current tango culture in the Netherlands. Also out of a practical point of view, we booked on this first edition mainly artists who have a connection with Amsterdam.
Focus Tango Festival wishes to grow into a strong musical and educational program, which also attracts dancers outside of the Netherlands and keeps them coming back.
More information about the festival you can find at focustangofestival.com.
Looking forward
Upcoming is a Workshop Weekend on Saturday 13th and Sunday 14th of April, by Sercan Yigit and Zeynep Aktar, who made an unforgettable impression at Focus Tango Festival 2022.
Several other productions are in preparation, like a movie weekend, theatre performance and talks. Some of these are co-productions with other parties, like artists, historic (dance) locations and schools.
Besides organising the Focus Tango Festival, the foundation will work on conserving and disclosing local archives. There is a need to conserve and digitise all kinds of photo- and film material. At the moment still a lot of information about tango in the Netherlands is scattered and not easily accessible. The Focus Tango Foundation strives to do its part by presenting information. You can think of exhibitions, talks and a sort of start page, a knowledge bank with a timeline of milestones, a family tree and a database with photos, films, books, statues, paintings and so on. The organisation also wants to produce events which include other forms of media and arts, like a film weekend, live performances and an audio tour. With this we aim to get a better insight of the broad spectre of the history and development of tango in Amsterdam and the Netherlands.
Dance parties, education and heritage are goals but also the theme of health is high on our agenda. Dancing is good for the body, brain and spirit but how does this work exactly? To get answers we need to combine forces with others, do research and involve specialists.
The Focus Tango Foundation also wants to offer introduction courses to youngsters at schools and older people in for example nurturing homes. With this the foundation hopes to inspire people to keep on dancing.
If you want more information, please do not hesitate to
contact us.
Stay informed and register
hier for our newsletter.