Maria Nieves Rego and Juan Carlos Copes danced together for nearly 50 years, and now their story is celebrated in a new film by Wim Wenders. Our Last Tango is screening on Friday May 27 at Mullumbimby Civic Hall…don’t miss it.
In Buenos Aires in the 1940s, she was the most beautiful girl in the neighbourhood. He could not dance at all. But they had a dream and together they changed the history of tango. Our Last Tango, a feature documentary executive produced by Wim Wenders (Pina, Buena Vista Social Club), is a story of love – between the two most celebrated dancers in tango’s history, and their tremendous love for that most passionate dance form. But it is also a story of seduction, rejection and betrayal.
Maria Nieves Rego and Juan Carlos Copes met when they were 14 and 17, and danced together for nearly fifty years. In all those years they loved and hated each other and went through several painful separations, but remained partners in dance. No other man danced like Juan and no other woman danced like Maria.
Both came from impoverished backgrounds, but together they took tango from the backstreets of Buenos Aires to Broadway, where they staged their Tango Argentina show in the 1980s, featuring the couple dancing atop a small table, something that Maria admitted had always terrified her.
Now, Maria (80) and Juan (83) open up about their love, their hatred, and their passion. Our Last Tango bridges the gap between generations, as Juan and Maria tell their story to a group of young tango dancers and choreographers from Buenos Aires, who transform the most moving and dramatic moments of Juan and Maria’s lives into incredible, beautifully shot choreographies that complement the soul-searching interviews and documentary moments of the film to make this an unforgettable journey into the heart of the tango.
Our Last Tango screens on Friday May 27 at Mullumbimby Civic Hall. Before the film a group of local dancers including tango teacher Ange Keenan will present a social tango demonstration at 7pm. Tickets $15/$13 conc. available at Mullumbimby Bookshop and Mary Ryan’s Byron Bay, or through [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> . Doors open at 6.30pm for chai and cakes and the film screens at 7.30pm.
