Once famously described as “the vertical expression of a horizontal desire”, tango embodies the thrill of unconsummated potential. Relying on the art of suggestion, it is dance as a kind of kinetic seduction technique.
In his latest production Miguel Angel Zotto, the brains behind Tango Por Dos, as well as this Argentine company’s lead dancer, offers up plenty of foreplay while also repeatedly trying to deliver the orgasm. The results can be highly entertaining, and occasionally a little wearying.
Spread across two acts, Buenos Aires Tango is a big night out. The show loosely charts the history of tango from brothel to ballroom. It is, strictly speaking, not a new work. As a marker of the 20th anniversary of Zotto’s troupe, it has principally been assembled, Frankenstein-style, out of scenes from past productions.
Zotto has often reminded me of a more genial version of the classic Hollywood gangster George Raft. Stocky but sleek, he combines feline ease with a ferret-like focus. His most frequent partner is Daiana Gaspero, a pert dancer as malleable as wet clay. Their first pairing is elegantly louche and sprinkled with enjoyable touches: the mincing steps he takes round the joint axis of their bodies; the way he shifts and directs her feet with his; how at the finish she runs, jumps up into his arms and clings as if he were a tree trunk.
Zotto later demonstrates his comic finesse, conveying Gaspero to the lip of the stage where they play a game of rapid footsie. This is literally dancing on the edge.
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Gathered round Zotto is a skilful young ensemble of near-immaculate technicians. Slinky costumes underline how glossy and glamorous the women are. They and their men serve up an often ecstatic blitz of twisting jumps, swivel steps, nimble hops and furious, flick-knife kicks. Some of the duets are simply sensational but circussy, too.
Designed to impress rather than charm, the show at times exudes a slick, soulless glamour more suited to a magazine photo shoot than a milonga (an Argentine dance hall). The subtler negotiations and more human intimacies of social tango are pretty much absent.
Despite these shortcomings, Buenos Aires Tango has its moments. A five-piece band under the direction of Pocho Palmer grows in authority as the evening progresses.
Box office: 0844 4124322. Until Feb 23