You dance with one person and you feel like every step you make is perfect, you are completely on your axis, everything fits, everything is connected. You think “wow I really know this, I am getting good at this.” You take your next embrace and suddenly you can’t find your balance, every step is precarious and awkward, you keep bumping into your partner and the music isn’t even in your awareness.

Social tango is competitive by nature. But it’s a strange kind of competition. There is no physical prize at the end, there is no certificate of accomplishment or a medal at the end of the milonga. We go in competing for the attention of someone we want to dance with.