In my article “Heel or Ball? The secret how to walk right in Argentine Tango” I describe the different possibilities of walking in Tango.
Walking in Tango Argentino: Men mostly walk forward, women instead mostly walk backwards Photo: Ricky Barrios und Laura Melo
However, this is only about the right way to walk forward.
That means the description is more for men, or for all those who play the role of the “leader” (Though I find it more fitting and nice to talk about seducing to take a step instead of leading.), AND for situations where the women go forward.
So here is the little completion on the topic
How to walk right in Tango?
Since women usually go backwards in tango, they are almost always landing on the toe and roll over the heel. It looks most elegant when the inside of the big toe first touches the ground and the foot points outward and slightly backwards (slightly backwards is, admittedly, the more difficult variant).
This is wonce women get used to it, in most cases the most stable posture.
Of course the woman can stand on the ball of her feet during the whole dance, and many dancers do that as well. However, in the long run thi is is quite exhausting, and when she wears high-heeled shoes very difficult or even impossible.
It is more comfortable and relaxing to really set the foot down on the heel and make contact with the ground. Here high-heeled shoes are helpful. Many women who usually do not wear shoes with high or very high heels are amazed at how much safety and firm hold they provide in dancing Tango.
Of course, the same applies to men when they dance backwards while dancing tango (apart from the high heels :-).
Another short note: For women who wear high-heeled shoes, rolling over the heels is probably the only sensible option when walking forward with long strides.
You might also be interested in this article.
Heel or ball? The secret how to walk right in Argentine Tango
