Shared Energy: An Interview with Arjay Centeno & Melissa Rutz
Arjay Centeno and Melissa Rutz are ranked among the top west coast swing dancers in the world. Placing at the top of champion-level competitions at west coast swing festivals across the country, they regularly teach nationally and internationally. Arjay and Melissa came from different but complementary backgrounds: Arjay came from a musical background playing the violin and started his dance interests with hip hop in high school. Melissa started dancing at the age of four, with years of intensive ballet training before discovering theater arts adagio, ballroom, lindy hop, and swing. After they began their partnership in 1999, they competed in International Ballroom and Latin before discovering their shared passion for west coast swing. Now they share their knowledge and enthusiasm for the dance by teaching, performing, and competing. After a weekend of teaching workshops in Anchorage, Alaska, they sat down with me to share their thoughts on connection, musicality, and flow in west coast swing and other social dances. You can read their thoughts below…
Note: This interview was published in the spring of 2009. Arjay and Melissa are no longer consistently teaching and competing together, but they both remain active in the national west coast swing community.
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Connected Movement: An Interview with Alex Krebs
Alex Krebs is an Argentine tango instructor based in Portland, Oregon. He has taught and performed throughout the United States and Europe and now owns the studio Tango Berretín in Portland. He is especially known for his focus on musicality in the tango. With a Bachelor’s degree in music and physics from Reed College, Alex has been a musician for most of his life. In 2002, he started playing the bandoneón, the challenging accordion-like instrument that gives the tango its distinctive sound. He is also the director of Conjunto Berretín, a tango orchestra that plays at local festivals and events.
At Portland’s Tangofest in October of 2008, I sat down with Alex in the Tiffany Center ballroom in downtown Portland before Conjunto Berretín’s rehearsal for the Grande Ball. I was especially interested in Alex’s perspective on the concepts of musicality, connection, and flow in Argentine tango based on his unique background and experiences. As we began talking, I immediately formed the impression that Alex has the ability to be analytical and thoughtful when it comes to the tango while simultaneously communicating a great passion for the dance and the music that inspires it. His answers to my questions showed deep reflection and attention to detail, which I immediately identified as qualities that make for an instructor who not only understands what he is teaching but communicates that understanding to his students with great clarity and vision. That vision comes as the result of an interesting journey into the heart of the tango.
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Musicality and Connection: An Interview with Felipe and Rosa
Originally from Spain, Felipe and Rosa are Argentine tango instructors based in San Francisco. Their deep knowledge of the dance and generous teaching style have taken them across the United States and Europe. In early February, they taught a series of workshops in Anchorage, Alaska. I sat down with them during their visit to ask them about what makes social dance, and Argentine Tango in particular, so intoxicating. Here are some of their thoughts.
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