Daily Bruin | Students connect with others through the tradition of tango

“…Since Argentine tango is improvisational, dancers do not typically perform in front of an audience, Ortiz-Marquez said. She attends social events known as “milongas” to connect with other dancers every week and has worked on mastering techniques and skills for years to comprehensively lead or follow the dance.

Ortiz-Marquez said the Argentine tango she dances is reminiscent of the origins of the style, before the upper classes of Buenos Aires began adapting it for themselves.

“Most people think that tango is what you see on ‘Dancing with the Stars,'” Ortiz-Marquez said. “People look at it as something super high-class or pretentious, but it came right out of the slums. … It’s a way of connecting with different human beings.”