Instructors
Posted on 03/10/2009 05:48 pm by admin
Ken Ashcom: Classes with Ken can be taken at the Fort Boise Community Center and at various ports of call around Boise. Relatively new to dancing, Ken’s strength is in teaching the basics of the walk and a wonderful embrace.
MARGE DOBIE
With an extensive background in ballroom for the last 9 years and 8 years of dedication to studying the Argentine Tango Marge is uniquely positioned to introduce both absolute beginners and cross discipline dancers to the world of Argentine Tango. She travels regularly to tango festivals across the US and has trained with many of America’s favorite tango professionals including Felipe Martinez, Rosa Corisco, Diego Blanco, Ana Padron, Somer Surgit, Agape Pappas, Jay Rabe, J Abling, and Luiza Paez. Marge’s musicality stems from a lifetime of playing a variety of instruments including percussion and cello. Her appreciation of the complexity and of the innate beauty of traditional and alternative tango music is reflected in her dancing and teaching.
JEANNE ROGERS
Jeanne grew up in a dancing family in a community outside of Chicago, Illinois, where music and dance played integral parts of her junior high lunch hour and Friday nights, with east coast swing the mainstay and cheek-to-cheek box-step a close runner-up. Always one to seek the pleasures of music and the fun of moving to music, Jeanne studied piano, ballet and international folk dancing after school; at home her relatives rolled up the rug and taught the kids how to waltz, foxtrot and cowboy two-step. In later years Jeanne’s love for dance found expression in theater, Scandinavian dance, ballroom, Cajun and Zydeco.
By the autumn of 1999 the only dance on her wish list that Jeanne had not studied was Argentine tango. However, that changed when she moved to Portland, Oregon, picked up a newspaper, and saw tango venues listed for every night of the week. Jeanne had hit tango Mecca. She counts it her good fortune to have arrived in Portland in time to study with Alex Krebs, an extremely talented musician and teacher dedicated to studying in Argentina and sharing his expertise with dancers worldwide. In her newfound supportive community, Jeanne easily connected with the heart, fun, and musicality of Tango.
A newcomer to Boise in May 2008, Jeanne finds the tango community here very welcoming and friendly. She’s delighted to have discovered the sweet spirit of Boise and excited to share her favorite dance with others as a way of saying thank you to all of her talented teachers from Portland and all over the world
SARAH DURNEY
Sarah’s love for dancing and creative movement started with gymnastics and later, with modern dance. She studied dance at the University of Oregon where she pursued all types of movement forms. Sarah is passionate about a diverse array of movement styles, which includes outdoor activities like skiing, rock climbing and Ashtanga vinyasa yoga. In addition to teaching tango, she also teaches yoga and rock climbing here in Boise. In 2005, Sarah’s love for adventure led her to Chile and Argentina on a mountain climbing expedition, and it was while she was in Argentina that she was introduced to Argentine Tango.
Sarah’s interest in yoga philosophy took her to India where she studied yoga and the classical Indian dance, Odissi. She also taught Argentine Tango while she was there to a few local couples. Her background in modern dance, and recently Odissi, makes her dancing unique, musical, and fun. Sarah’s favorite way to dance the tango is in traditional Buenos Aires salon style — sensual, creative, and magical.Sarah is dedicated to learning and sharing this beautiful dance with others. She has been teaching in the Boise area and truly believes this dance can enrich people’s lives.
PAWEL MROZEK
Although tango in Boise has evolved over the years and has migrated from location to location, one constant has always been present: Pawel Mrozek.
As a child in Poland, Pawel was accustomed to the tango sound popularized by the folk bands of the sixties in Eastern Europe. Then, many years ago while working in Tucson, Arizona, Pawel stumbled into the Shoebox Tango Studio and met an instructor by the name of Homer Ladas. Homer is considered by many to be the godfather of Fusion Tango. It did not take long for Pawel to become fascinated by all that is Tango, e.g. the close embrace, the playfulness of the steps, and the attraction of the music. The rest is history.
Pawel brought his love of tango with him when he moved to Idaho from Arizona. He became the pillar of the Boise tango community and kept the tango scene alive and well in Boise for all of us to enjoy. He anchored every workshop and milonga, sometimes as a D.J., always as a primary lead, and for years he was also the instructor. Pawel continues to push himself and his students to the next level of tango and beyond. Pawel has studied Argentine Tango with many of the masters in the United States and Europe. He attended and participated in milongas in many different countries, as well as speaking the universal language of Salon Style. He also looks to other dance disciplines for inspiration. He is an accomplished ballroom dance enthusiast with experience competing in American Rhythm and American Smooth styles. Pawel encourages his fellow ballroom dancers to experiment with Salon Style Tango as well.
We look forward to Pawel’s return to Boise either as a visitor in the short term or as a resident again. Most of all, we wish him the best of luck as he charges up the tango community in his new home, Toldeo, Ohio. We think they will be the lucky ones.