The Best of Salsa Classes, Salsa Clubs, Salsa EventsCo-Author "Find the Rhythm" & Founder of London's Carnival de Cuba
LONDON SALSA - LONDON's LATIN SCENE - November 28th 2011
It Takes Two to Midnight Tango
With opening night for Vincent and Flavia's Midnight Tango at London's Aldwych Theatre on 20th January 2012, Flavia talks to Lee Knights about the making of the show and its inspiration – an unquenchable passion for Argentine Tango"It's something we've always wanted to do, something we've talked about a lot. But it's not something we'd dream of doing without the backing of a professional production company," says Flavia Cacace. "So when we got a call from Adam Spiegel, we jumped at the chance. It was the opportunity of a lifetime." Spiegel - whose credits include Fame The Musical, Saturday Night Fever, Lady Salsa, Sister Act and Amadeus – put his cards on the table right from the start. "Adam asked to meet up with Vincent and me for a coffee. We had no idea what he wanted to talk about, we just knew his reputation. He told us he wanted to work with us. It felt as though it was meant to be," says Flavia.A man on a mission to find the next big thing on the UK dance scene, Spiegel is confident Vincent and Flavia are the gold he's looking for. After six years as professional dancers on Strictly Come Dancing, Vincent Simone and Flavia Cacace are favourites with TV audiences. Strictly has provided a showcase for their dazzling partnership, honed as UK Professional Ten Dance Champions (2002-2006), UK Professional Showdance Champions (2003-2006), UK Argentine Tango Champions (2006), World Argentine Tango Show Champions 2005/2006 and more. Arguably, their celebrity status and passion for all styles of tango has combined to create the biggest single lift for the dance's popularity in the UK.Co-producing the show is Arlene Phillips, choreographer and judge of So You Think You Can Dance? and formerly of Strictly Come Dancing. Phillips is a self confessed Vincent and Flavia fan, so a natural ally and heavyweight advocate for the show. "Vincent and Flavia are amazing to watch – there's just no other partnership like it; they are so perfectly in tune with one another. They use every part of their bodies, from their heads to their fingertips, with their hearts and souls. It's tango to make you tingle," she says. With full creative control over Midnight Tango in their hands, this is the biggest project Vincent and she have ever taken on, says Flavia. They are creating all the choreographies for the show, performing the lead roles as well as putting together a new dance company. "We are putting everything into Midnight Tango, nothing is held back," says Flavia.The setting for Midnight Tango is a late-night bar in Buenos Aires, where relationships and characters unfold and unravel, infused with the drama, moodiness and depth of Argentine tango dance and music. "The storytelling is subtle, we aren't acting or talking, everything is expressed through dance," explains Flavia.There was a steep learning curve right from the start, explains Flavia. "We are experienced ballroom dancers, and we're used to dancing in ballrooms and halls, not on a stage."With recent theatre credits including Footloose (West End, South Africa, UK tours) and Fame (West End, UK tours), director Karen Bruce's specialist input was vital, recalls Flavia.
credit: www.snootyfox.com
"We had intensive brainstorming sessions with Karen Bruce to see what would work on a stage and what would not. Working on the stage is a totally different experience from dancing in a ballroom. On stage, you're only seen from the front, rather than all four sides. Vincent and I have had to change how we work to develop choreographies for the show." The show was their chance to bring to life their vision of Argentine tango and the spirit of Buenos Aires to life on the stage, says Flavia. "We didn't want to do what had been done before, like going over the history of tango. We wanted to create a story that would be personal and special to us. We wanted to capitivate an audience with dances we made and music and songs we love and move us. We listened to songs and music for hours. Afterwards, we put together a story line linking all the songs together," Flavia explains.Midnight Tango showcases all three forms of Argentine Tango – traditional; milonga and tango waltz. "We're using different tango styles to highlight the emotions of characters and the deeper meaning behind movement. We want all sequences to show light and shade," says Flavia. There were no short cuts when it came to putting together a dance company for the show. "Argentine Tango is totally different from the ballroom style, so we couldn't use Strictly dancers. We wanted to use the world's best dancers. In the end, we selected 10 dancers. Some are based in the UK already, some we will fly in from Argentina. They will be new faces for UK audiences," Flavia explains.Live music will help to create Midnight Tango's authentic mood and sense of place, says Flavia. This comes from Tango Siempre, widely regarded as the UK's leading tango ensemble. The 5-piece ensemble, with Buenos Aires-born vocalist and guitarist Guillermo Rozenthuler, will perform their own arrangements of Flavia and Vincent's favourite music and songs.For Vincent and Flavia, Midnight Tango allows scope for creative self expression invariably restricted by Strictly's tight deadlines. "This is the most exciting thing we've ever done and it's pushing us to the limit. We work in the studio for hours, rehearsing until we can't move any more and we've used up all our brain cells. Midnight Tango is allowing Vincent and I to commit as much time as we need to deepen choreographies, work on every detail. Our method of working is very free, it's all set by the mood we're in, so if we're feeling in a light mood, we'll work on a milonga, a happier, faster genre of tango. If we're in a heavier mood, we'll work on a sequence with traditional tango," says Flavia."We love working in front of a live audience. It's something we've discovered touring with Strictly. It's a beautiful feeling, it's about the whole experience of performing on stage, the atmosphere, the lighting, the sets. It's a natural thing, when we work with a live audience, we feed off their reactions and we up our game. We want to inspire our audiences, convey the passion we feel for tango. We laugh a lot when we dance and we want audiences to laugh and enjoy the show as much as we do.Working together on Midnight Tango is deepening our connection with Argentine tango. It's amazing what you can do with four legs. We're falling more in love with it than ever," muses Flavia.Midnight Tango is in the West End for 10 weeks from 20th January at the Aldwych Theatre, WC2 0844 248 5140 and on UK tour from 10th April. For more and to buy tickets, visit www.midnighttango.co.uk More on Vincent and Flavia, visit: www.vincentandflavia.com
