A tango that longed for a bigger stage to breathe
Tango In Silk is a five-minute tango choreographed and performed by Xi Liu, with partner Mingcong Hu. Having made an impression at the Edinburgh Fringe, the piece drew loyal audiences– one woman beside me had even travelled from Cambridge to see it again after falling in love with the performance there. This speaks volumes about the impact the duo is capable of achieving, though on this particular night in London the magic didn’t quite land in the same way.
Visually, the work is stunning. Xi Liu, radiant in a flowing red dress that nodded to her heritage, offered a striking image onstage. The costuming was elegant and evocative, drawing the eye from the opening steps right through to the final pose. The music, too, was beautifully chosen: a blend of Argentine and Chinese melodies that anchored the piece in its central theme of cultural fusion. In these elements, the show succeeds– interweaving the sensuality of tango with the shimmering glamour of 1930s Shanghai.
The choreography set out to tell a story: the experience of an East Asian woman arriving in the UK, her journey from fear and displacement toward confidence and transformation. While the lifts and poses were impressive, the narrative arc didn’t always come through as clearly as intended. Moments of connection between the dancers, so essential to tango’s intensity, felt underplayed, which diluted the emotional power of the piece.
The ending was particularly abrupt. When the lights came up, the audience seemed momentarily unsure if the performance had truly finished– an unusual silence filled the room. No one lifted from their seats, no one spoke– a woman had to come in and say “You can take pictures with the company on stage. That was the show”. It was telling when the audience member beside me, who had spoken so fondly of the Edinburgh run, whispered, “It wasn’t like that in Edinburgh.”
To be fair to the dancers, the venue might have been a mismatch for the show. Whilst The Etcetera Theatre is a wonderful and accessible venue, it is perhaps not the best fit for a piece involving such expansive lifts and sweeping movement. The dancers seemed slightly confined by the stage, which may have contributed to a sense of hesitancy that rippled through the performance. Even so, both Liu and Hu are clearly talented dancers with a compelling vision. Tango in Silk promises a poetic, culturally rich experience, and with some refinement– and perhaps a more suitable venue– it could fully deliver on its potential.