2019 Instructors
Nick Jones & Fiona Foster
Nick Jones has been studying and dancing tango since 1996, he began teaching in 1998. He was one of the first North American tango dancers to teach and perform at a festival in Buenos Aires (Pulpo's Tango Week). He has taught and performed at many tango festivals and workshops across N. & S. America, Europe, Australia & China over the last 16 years.
In 2008 he formed the Orquesta Tipica NaturalTango, in which he plays the bandoneon. Playing in and leading the Orquesta has given him a unique look into the inner working of tango music, and has greatly influenced his dancing, teaching and performing.
Nick unreservedly shares his technique, structure, musicality and concepts so that each individual student can ultimately reach their own expression in the dance.
Nick loves to geek out over tango and will happily show you his collection of autobiographies of tango musicians, original photos, 78rpm record, and other tango memorabilia he found antiquing in Buenos Aires.
Fiona Foster has been studying dance and movement since she was seven, and Tango has been her focus for the last 14 years. She has been a student of many tango styles, both roles, and social danced all over the world. She feels passionately about how these experiences inform her perspective of the dance. Fiona began teaching tango in 2007. As a teacher, Fiona gives students the tools they need to have fun dancing at any level.
As an international tango DJ and musician, Fiona loves the emotion and storytelling encapsulated in traditional music and also respects that some people discover their passion for tango through ‘alternative’ songs. Fiona was co-president of CU tango for two years, where she organized the first-ever student/ community Milonga. She is thrilled to be part of this inter-collegiate event, which is next level awesome. During the day, Fiona is also a Marketing Manager and Independent Radio Producer.
Tommy Smith & Christian Wheelihan
Tommy discovered tango in early 2012 and immediately became obsessed. Since then his love for exploring both the technical and emotional facets of tango has grown. His skills and interests run the full spectrum: teaching, DJing, performing, and organizing. Constantly seeking out top tango instructors to train with, Tommy is committed to the notion learning tango is a journey, not a destination.
Tommy brings his analytic and organized teaching style into the tango classroom, drawing from extensive experience as a professor of engineering. He values deep investigation into the “whys” and “hows” of tango movement,
Christian discovered Argentine Tango 6 years ago with her partner Tommy Smith, and has since become a beloved teacher in the Boise community. Her teaching style emphasizes what she values most: connection in the embrace and comfort in the dance. Christian aspires to bring a relaxed and positive environment to the class, taking a highly personal approach to teaching. She has 5 years of tango teaching experience and has taught with Tommy in multiple locations around Boise, including weekly lessons, group progressive series, and student club classes at Boise State University.
When Christian is not dancing, she works in the community as a social worker, bringing her empathy and compassion developed in this arena into her dance.
striving to present concepts that both reinforce each other organically and are accessible to students of all levels. He teaches comfortable and connected social tango, emphasizing embrace, thoughtfulness, and musicality. With over 5 years of tango teaching experience, Tommy has taught in multiple locations around Boise, as well as regionally at events such as Missoula’s Spring Tango and Salt Lake City’s Mountain Milonga.
John Miller & Jesica Cutler
John Miller and Jesica Cutler have been dancing, teaching, and performing together since 2013 and in that time have developed a style that is engaging, fun, and informative. Jesica’s profound knowledge of anatomy and John’s deep analysis of Tango structure make for classes that are clear, concise, and insightful. Together they are charming, funny, and a delightful couple. They have taught together at Tango festivals in the US and Mexico, including Tango on the Rocks, the Wasatch Tango Festival, Mountain Milonga Retreat, the Baja EcoTango Festival, Tree City Tango in Boise, and the Boulder Tango Festival. John and Jesica are the organizers of Tango on the Rocks, Denver’s most popular festival.
Sean Ericson and Cindy Giannini
When Sean and Cindy met four years ago, they instantly fell upon an exciting partnership. Coming from dance backgrounds, Sean as a competitive ballroom dancer and Cindy as a professional ballet dancer with the Joffrey ballet, they were very excited to begin creating choreographies and working on growing their technique. They have been fortunate to have the opportunity to work with renowned tango maestros to bring their dancing to new levels.
Sean and Cindy are determined to continue discovering their dance and to share, through teaching, their knowledge of the art form. Enjoying the social side of tango, Sean and Cindy are active members of the Colorado tango community. They are especially passionate about the performance aspect of tango however, and the ability to tell stories through the choreographies they create.
They have been privileged to perform with several live orchestras and to represent the United States at the Mundial de Tango in Buenos Aires after being named the official 2017 USA stage tango champions. They currently perform with Parasol Arts, a non for profit performing arts company that brings Argentine tango, music, art and theatre performance to life in the Denver area.
Their true love for tango, however, comes from the connection they find in each other, the music, and the joy they find in their unique artistic expression.
2019 DJs
Tommy Smith
Tommy has a passion for traditional tango music and DJing, and he believes understanding the mind of the social dancer is the key to great DJing. To educate and motivate beginning DJs, progressing DJs, and those interested in tango music, he offers semi-regular DJ workshops. Festivals he has DJ'd at include Montana's Tango Uprising, Salt Lake City Tango Festival, Mountain Milonga, CONNECT, Tango on the Rocks, and Washington DC’s Holiday Tango.
John Miller
John Miller has DJed just about everywhere: high school sock-hops, under bridges, in seedy bars, at weddings, funerals, dozens of festivals and thousands of milongas. He knows how to draw the dancers onto the floor and keep them there.
Sarah Genung
Sarah Genung encountered tango one night in 2005 when she was 14 years old. Although she has a background in multiple dances, starting with ballet when she was 3, she knew by the end of the night that it would be tango which would stick with her forever. Since then Sarah has striven to study the dance, history and music - looking forward to every new discovery. Sarah started DJing in 2013 in a cozy neighborhood milonga in her college town and has since played in cities across Washington, Colorado and Florida. Psycho-oncology researcher by day and tanguera by night, she feels tango music has a special magic and looks forward to sharing that when DJing her first festival!