an o Time
Eduardo
Dorfer
stepped into
a dance
career with
a south-of-
the-border
beat.
SUZANNE CHESSLER
SPECIAL TO THE JEWISH NEWS
duardo Dorfer
v; gave up ball fields
for dance floors.
,
The turning point
came while he was
watching a tango
contest on televi-
sion.
Until he was in
his 20s, pursuing a semi-pro
baseball career in New York,
Mr. Dorfer had no interest in
dancing. Then one evening, just
by chance, he happened to
switch his TV set to the smooth-
stepping competition and loved
the way the performers moved.
Mr. Dorfer signed up for
lessons at a private school. To
his surprise, he soon was asked
to teach and appear in dance ex-
hibitions.
With performance opportu-
nities increasing at the same
pace as his enthusiasm, Mr.
Dorfer dropped sports activities,
concerned that injuries could
interfere with his new-found
profession.
Now, three decades later, Mr.
Dorfer is making his third per-
formance/teaching visit to
Michigan. Joined by his wife
and dance partner Mercedes
Colon, he will present his own
choreography 8 p.m. March 25,
at Oakland Community College
in Farmington Hills.
Sponsored by Musica Viva
International Concerts, the pro-
gram also includes performers
from the Troy Dance Studio,
where Mr. Dorfer will conduct
tango workshops.
`This is going to be a two-part
show," explained Mr. Dorfer,
who has become a specialist in
Argentine tango. "The first half
is going to feature various kinds
of Latin dances, and the second
half is going to be all tango."
Mr. Dorfer also performed in
Michigan in October and in
January, after a member of the
Troy Dance Studio watched
him during a dance weekend at
the Concord Hotel in upstate
New York. She invited him to
bring his workshop and show
to the studio.
"Soul makes the Argentine
tango different," Mr. Dorfer ex-
plained. "Tango is not just a
dance among the Argentinians;
it's a way of life. It's not just
steps and patterns; it's emotions
and feelings.
"I've never been to Buenos
Aires, but the show Tango
Argentine came to New York in
and
1985
changed my
whole life. We
studied every
day with the
people from the
cast.
"We learned
that the dance is
like acting. We
communicate
through our body
language. When
I dance with my
wife, we project to
each other, not
out to the audi-
ence. We try to
maintain eye
contact continu-
ally.”
When Mr.
Dorfer is not
performing at
resorts, the-
aters or clubs,
conducting
workshops for
adult educa-
tion pro-
grams or
appearing on
cable TV, he oper-
ates his own dance
studio in Queens, giv-
ing private lessons in all kinds
of ballroom dancing to about
150 students.
During the 30 years he has
been teaching, two students
have been particularly memo-
rable.
The first is his wife, who
started her dance career in
1979. She met Mr. Dorfer while
attending a social dance class
for beginners. Her studies soon
evolved to theatrical dance, and
the duo has been performing to-
gether since.
The second is Agnes Adachi.
She worked with Raoul Wal-
lenberg, the Swedish diplomat
who saved the lives of 100,000
Hungarian Jews during World
War II. Ms. Adachi, 75, con-
tinues to accept public speak-
ing engagements about her
experiences, which she has
chronicled in a book, The Child
of the Winds: My Mission With
Raoul Wallenberg.
"I met Agnes Adachi when I
was teaching an adult educa-
tion program in Queens a num-
ber of years ago," Mr. Dorfer
recalled. "It is believed Mr. Wal-
lenberg was captured by the
Russians, and Agnes has been
spending her life trying to find
Merce des
dancing, he enjoys being
him, working through the
Colon and
called on to present Latin
Greater New York Wal-
Edua rdo
dancing programs for var-
lenberg Committee. She
Dort er
ious temples and B'nai
still feels that he's alive.
B'rith parties.
"She approached me
Regardless of where Mr. Dor-
and said the committee spon-
fer is presenting a program, he
sored benefits, and asked if I
tells his students what he con-
siders important in making a
"I've never been to great dancer: dedication, drive,
motivation and not letting any-
Buenos Aires, but
thing get in the way.
For those who cannot attend
the show
classes or private lessons, Mr
Dorfer has developed two video-
to
tapes to help individuals learn
New York and
to tango and mambo.
When Mr. Dorfer leaves
changed my whole
Michigan, he also will be leav-
ing the tango for a short time.
life."
He will be rehearsing for an
— Eduardo Dorfer
April 15 mambo jamboree at
Club Broadway in Manhattan.
Tango
Argentine came
would consider doing one. I did
in 1989 with a complete tango
show at Queensborough Corn-
munity College."
Mr. Dorfer, whose own eth-
nic background is Russian-Jew-
ish, changed his first name from
Edward to Eduardo as his ca-
reer was moving to a south-of-
the-border beat. Although he
does not do any Jewish folk
Eduardo Dorfer will be per-
forming at 8 p.m. March 25, at
the Smith Theatre for the Per-
forming Arts, Orchard Ridge
Campus, Oakland Community
College, Farmington Hills. For
information, call 471-7700. For
information on workshops held
in conjunction with the perfor-
mance, call 292-1080. ❑