It takes two: Embassies of Argentina and Uruguay hold Tango Day showcase in Korea

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It takes two: Embassies of Argentina and Uruguay hold Tango Day showcase in Korea

Published: 11 Dec. 2025, 18:54 Updated: 11 Dec. 2025, 19:45

MICHAEL LEE
[email protected]

Audio report: written by reporters, read by AI

Left: Risoo and Yeji, who performed at the Tango Day event at the Yongsan District Office in central Seoul on Dec. 11, dance to of Juan D’Arienzo’s “Remembranza.″ Middle: Breeze and Ms. Tang dance to Anibal Troilo’s “B.B.″ Right: London Hong and Sol closed the ceremony by dancing to “De floreo” by Tango Bardo. [MICHAEL LEE]

The notes of a bandoneón and the hush of an expectant crowd filled the Art Hall of the Yongsan District Office in central Seoul on Thursday afternoon as diplomats, local officials and dancers gathered to showcase tango, which was born on the shores of the Río de la Plata in South America but has found a home in Korea.

The performances, held for the International Day of Tango, showed how passion can become a diplomatic language and highlighted the vibrant tango community in Seoul, thousands of miles from Buenos Aires and Montevideo.

The ceremony opened with a joint speech by the ambassadors of Argentina and Uruguay, the two nations that cradle tango’s origins.

The two ambassadors — engaging in a friendly, almost conversational duet — evoked the intertwined histories of their nations and the music that binds them. Tango, they reminded the audience, was not merely entertainment but a product of migration, hybrid identity and shared struggle.

“Buenos Aires and Montevideo were the birthplace of tango,” Uruguayan Ambassador Pablo Scheiner said. “We always say that tango is a creation of two shores, a child of the Río de la Plata, a cultural and historical bridge that unites our countries.”

Uruguayan Ambassador to Korea Pablo Scheiner, left, and Argentine Ambassador Dario Cesar Celaya Alvarez deliver the opening remarks for a ceremony to mark Tango Day at the Art Hall of Yongsan District Office in central Seoul on Dec. 11. [MICHAEL LEE]

Argentine Ambassador Dario Cesar Celaya Alvarez added that tango, like jazz, traveled the world to become universal. Its power to fuse song, dance and emotional narrative, he said, explains why it has become “part of the human repertoire.”

In 2009, Unesco recognized tango as part of the world’s Intangible Cultural Heritage. Scheiner reflected on that designation as a validation of a form born among working-class communities — immigrants from Europe, enslaved Africans, gaucho ranchers from the interior and urban creoles — all shaping a new musical language. Tango, he said, is “a testament to cultural continuity, empirical transmission and living identity.”

Scheiner noted that the Carlos Gardel International Tango Festival is currently taking place in Tacuarembó, Uruguay — an annual reminder that tango remains “alive, dynamic and inspiring new generations.”

With characteristic Río de la Plata humor, the ambassadors revived the longstanding, good-natured rivalry over tango’s most iconic figure, the musician Carlos Gardel, whom both countries claim as their own.

“Carlos Gardel is Uruguayan,” Scheiner joked, “although we gladly share him with our Argentine brothers and sisters.” Alvarez responded by invoking Argentine writer Jorge Luis Borges, who wrote that “tango is the human comedy of Buenos Aires,” underscoring how deeply the genre is woven into Argentine life.

Members of the sextet Elena dance to ″Loca″ at the Art Hall of Yongsan District Office in central Seoul on Dec. 11. [MICHAEL LEE]

The ambassadors also praised Korea’s fast-growing tango community — its dancers, milongas, academies and enthusiasts — whose devotion has made Seoul an unlikely but vibrant center for the art form.

Yongsan District, they announced, will host two major events next year: the Pacific Tango Championship in June 2026 and the Korea Tango Championship in February 2026. Both will take place at the Art Hall of the Yongsan District Office, which Alvarez declared “the Tango District of Seoul and Korea.”

Park Kyeong-su, chief of Yongsan’s administrative support division, celebrated the district’s role in promoting international cultural exchange. “I hope today’s event helps more citizens experience and fall in love with the beauty and passion of tango,” he said, calling it an honor for Yongsan to serve as a regional reference point for the art.

The ceremony culminated in a sequence of performances that traced the emotional range of tango, from sharp, syncopated footwork to intimate pauses that carried as much weight as the music.

The program began with Team Elena, a sextet whose high-intensity ensemble work to “Loca” (1955) ignited the hall with their swift pivots and tightly synchronized motion. They were followed by the rising duo Risoo and Yeji — fresh from major wins at the 2025 Korea Tango Championship — who offered a polished, elegant interpretation of Juan D’Arienzo’s “Remembranza” (1964).

Marco and Amy dance to “Corazon no le hagas a nadie” at the Art Hall of Yongsan District Office in central Seoul on Dec. 11. [MICHAEL LEE]

Marco and Amy, champions of the KTC New Star division, delivered a heartfelt rendering of “Corazón no le digas a nadie” (1944) that showcased their fluid lines and emotional restraint.

Veteran performers Breeze and Ms. Tang, winners of the Escenario category at the 2022 KTC competition, then took the stage with a dramatic, finely sculpted performance of Aníbal Troilo’s “B.B.” (1970), drawing appreciative murmurs from seasoned tango-goers.

The finale went to London Hong and Sol, four-time finalists at the Buenos Aires World Tango Championship, who closed the program with an intense, driving performance of “De floreo” (1942) by Tango Bardo that left spectators shouting “Bravo!” at its conclusion.

BY MICHAEL LEE [[email protected]]