Thanks for the review Sylvia. It was good to meet you too. This was an evening I really wanted to enjoy, but the first half failed to ignite for me. I think the main reason was the choreography, rather than the dancers who had an attractive freshness and vitality, especially the men, whom a friend told me have a high swoon factor. The second half Piazzola piece certainly had some sizzle and underlined what a fine dancer Julio Bocca is. Throughout the evening the recorded sound quality was poor and the bare stage with a grubby flat at the back did little to provide an agreeable environment for the dancers. <P>I take my hat off to Bocca for his work on behalf of ballet in Argentina and will be happy to see the Company again. <BR>

I have to say belatedly, that I do agree with Sylvia and Stuart's comments the second half was by far superior and the dancers seemed far more at home with this than the first half. They sizzled from the moment they stepped on stage in the second act whilst they seemed to be just presenting the first act to simply add an obligatory contrast. I would definitely have liked to have seen more tango and Stuart I agree with your friend - the men were definitely swoon-worthy!<p>[This message has been edited by Joanne (edited March 07, 2002).]

Unfortunately I didn't find the time to write my thoughts in detail on Bocca's offering to the Peacock Theatre. It was an enjoyable evening with plenty of energy, as you would expect to find where the stage is full of vibrant Latins. The quality of the ballet performed in the first Act of the programme was consistent with the place of ballet in Argentina - a good, highly watchable B team. Bocca danced to light up the stage in his Piazzolla-dedicated second act. The company was dressed in standard tango costume - split skirts, tight bodices, fishnet stockings and black patent stilettoes, all in black, for the ladies. Black jackets and pin-stripe trousers for the men. However, I will drum on as I always do about taking tango somewhere beyond tango - respect the dance it comes from. So, don't dress a woman in a black evening dress and high heels and then drag her around the floor. When you're truly dressed for tango, you cannot roll around the floor in a meaningful way. You just appear to be looking for a lost contact lens.