Le Tango de Matilda
An urban legend blending storytelling, music, and dance.
Matilda left her village in Italy and crossed the ocean to reach Argentina. It is the beginning of the 20th century, in a Buenos Aires undergoing rapid transformation, populated by immigrants seeking a new life. Matilda discovers an intense city, its neighborhoods, its cafés, its nights… and this new music beginning to resonate in the working-class districts: tango.
Free-spirited, curious, and determined, Matilda searches for her place in a world still largely dominated by men. As her story unfolds, the desires, encounters, and contradictions of an era emerge. And then there is Filippo, in his black suit, red scarf, and music reminiscent of the Café Arrabal. They draw closer, dance, drift apart, and find each other again. Tango then becomes much more than a dance: a way of living, expressing desire and affirming one’s freedom.
A story told through music and dance
Le Tango de Matilda takes us into the world of tango in the early decades of the 20th century, from the Guardia Vieja era to the great classics that accompanied its development. Melodies such as La Morocha, El Choclo, La Cumparsita, and Mi noche triste evoke this period when tango was taking shape, traveling, and gradually becoming one of the most emblematic expressions of Buenos Aires.
For this performance at the Fribourg Tango Festival, the story takes on a special dimension by bringing together spoken word, dance and live music on stage.
Jean Guiot , narrator and author of this urban legend, guides us through the story of Matilda and the atmosphere of early Buenos Aires.
Juan and Marie bring the story to life through dance, revealing through movement the encounters, tensions, seduction and emotions of tango.
The Cuarteto Mulenga, with singer Maximiliano Agüero, performs the music live throughout the show, creating a true dialogue between the story, the dancers and the musicians.
And the music continues…
After Le Tango de Matilda, the Cuarteto Mulenga will remain on stage to extend this musical journey with a short concert featuring a selection of pieces from their repertoire.
A natural transition from the show to the concert, allowing the music of tango to bring this special encounter to a close.