Three for tango

By Argentine law, no one is allowed to leave Buenos Aires without either eating a giant piece of steak or going to see a tango show. Fortunately for this silly English vegetarian, La Ventana theatre and restaurant had some free places for their dance show last night, so Michelle, Elaine and I booked up.

It was one of the more expensive places in town, but included dinner, wine and looked rather posh, so as we settled into our seats at 8ish we were feeling very excited. We did decline to have tourist snaps taken with two of the dancers hovering around the stage, particularly after I noticed that the male dancer couldn´t have been above 5ft 4.
Things looked up, however with the start of the dancing. Skimpy dresses and sharp suits, a live band on stage and sultry, high-speed moves that inspired gasps whenever a dancer was spun too close to the chandeliers. But that wasn´t all. We were treated to a (what seemed to me) Peruvian-style pan pipe band, a rope-spinning, drum-banging, tap-dancing gaucho and ever-more raunchy dance moves and revealing outfits from the stunning female dancers, which I´m sure left several men in the audience feeling like they didn´t want to stand up for a few minutes.

The low point was the live rendition of Don´t Cry For Me Argentina, sung in Spanish, complete with flag waving and a little plaster balcony. Do the Argentines really all love Andrew Lloyd Webber? But the peak of the show for me was the accordion band who played with such passion and energy that it was impossible to wipe the grin off my face during their every number.

I mercifully avoided the inch thick steaks, yet now feel I have experienced a little true Argentine culture so I´m off to get another cheese sandwich for my lunch...