A LEADING South American tango teacher is to spend a week giving lessons and holding workshops in West Somerset later this month, thanks to one of his students

Alejandro Justiniano, from Buenos Aires, Argentina, has taken up an invitation from Ali Le-Mar, who runs a monthly tango dancing class in Minehead.

He will be visiting with his partner Sara Parnigoni before they go on to Tunisia and Spain for further teaching commitments.

The visit comes after Ms Le-Mar was in Buenos Aires earlier this year and asked Señor Justiniano if he would consider visiting Minehead.

Ms Le-Mar said: “I have been dancing Argentine tango for many years, going over to Argentina for intensive lessons.

“It was always frustrating coming back as there was nowhere local to practice or continue with lessons.

“I would have to travel to Exeter or Bristol, which was not always convenient.

“Then I had a chance encounter with a couple of teachers from Northampton and they agreed to come a do a workshop for me in Minehead last April.

“It was a real success, so much so that I now host monthly workshops and our Argentine tango community is growing nicely.”

Ms Le-Mar was in Buenos Aires in March and suggested to Señor Justiniano ‘it would be great if one day he would come to the UK and do some teaching for me’.

“To my great surprise, he said he would think about it,” she said.

“I then had a call from him a couple of months later saying that he would like to come in August.”

Now, Señor Justiniano and Señora Parnigoni are set to arrive on August 24 and will be available for private lessons, with workshops being hosted in Minehead on August 26 and 27.

Ms Le-Mar said the classes were for all levels of ability, especially beginners.

She said: “It is a very exciting opportunity to learn from and dance with these extraordinary teachers.

“Nothing like this has happened in Minehead before, so I urge people to take advantage of their visit.

“The workshops are filling up fast but there are still some places left and also availability for private lessons during the week.”

More information is available on the Minehead Tango Facebook page or by calling Ms Le-Mar on 07789 880316.