Review: El Corte
21st June 2011
Introduction
El Corte (EC) is a Tango school and milonga venue established 26 years ago by the current owner and organiser Eric Jeurissen. Although it is based in the small Dutch city of Nijmegen (pop. 200,000) due to quality of teaching and dancing it has become world famous and many people think it is the premier single venue Tango destination in Europe. They run two sets of events in parallel. Those for the local population only and those with travelling Tango dancers, called Nomads.
Start planning your trip
For an overview of El Corte please refer to their website. It is a large site and going to the calendar page may be a good option to start.
They run a number of different Nomad events through the year, featured in orange on the calendar page.
For a first visit I would recommend one of individual events that run through the year where there is a mixture of classes and milongas and you have the opportunity to meet people in a relaxed environment. The ones I would recommend in order of preference are Summerdaze (3rd week of August), International Week or Weekend (1st week of July) or Mayday weekend. The Double Ocho festival in April is also very popular but I have not attended this event.
After this, a visit to one of the Chain Salons on the first weekend of each month from February to April and October to December, is recommended.
Getting there
Ryanair, Easyjet, British Airways and KLM fly from multiple British airports to either Eindhoven (1 1/2hrs to EC by bus and train every 15 minutes), Dusseldorf Weeze (45min to EC by an hourly shuttle service so check schedules) or Amsterdam Schiphol (1 1/2 hours to EC by direct train service from the airport at least every half hour).
It is also possible to take the Eurostar (choose any Dutch station for the destination option, 3 hours from Brussels Midi). National Express coach to Eindhoven or Amsterdam, the Train and Sail option featured by Anglian Rail landing at Hook of Holland (1 1/2 hours to EC by train) or drive (approximately 4hours from Calais).
Ground Transfers to El Corte
Once you arrive at your Dutch destination you then will need to get to Nijmegen Central Station.
For train details in Holland refer either to Holland by train - this site gives train routings and prices. Or, 9292 Journey Planner - showing train, buses and walking routings but no prices.
For the shuttle from Dusseldorf Weeze, refer to the schedule - please note, you will need to make an email reservation for this shuttle.
Whatever airport you arrive at, I have found that the transfers cost approximately 16 euros in each direction.
Finding the venue
EC is tricky to find the first time you go (check on the 9292 Journey Planner) It is on a short down sloping road besides the start of a flyover (which has the same road name). It lies between the Graafse Port Building and a small astroturf sports pitch and there is no name on the door.
Accommodation and food
You can stay in El Corte when the calendar shows Nomad entries, (shown in orange) for 12.50 euros per night for floor space including breakfast (not New Year's Eve). Bring your own bedding, but you need to prebook and the spaces go fast. Everybody is kept in check by Komala.
EC also has dormitory beds available for 25 euros per night and a private room for two for 60 euros, these go even quicker. There are also a number of hotels and B+B's in Nijmegen listed on the EC website and I always find the www.booking.com website to be useful.
For lunch and dinner there are a number of restaurants in the area or you can go to the local Co-op which is a 2 minute walk. In the warmer months taking the opportunity to eat at the outside restaurants on the pedestrians main street (5 minutes walk), or along the River Waal promenade (The Waalkade, a 10-15 minutes walk) are enjoyable options. You can then also visit the local dance shoe shop, which is by the main street, it is called Podium, their (Dutch-language) website is www.podium-nijmegen.nl, and you get a chance to try on the shoes.
The dancing
For individual events there is usually a schedule that is linked via the calendar page and it would be best to use this facility. For instance these are the links for International Week (July) and Summerdaze (August).
(The Summerdaze festival features my other favourite teachers Stefan and Komala.)
You can also see who is attending these events as full participants (normally the milongas have an open attendance policy) within the database section referred to in the accommodation section above.
However there is no schedule for the Chain salon Weekends but a schedule can be organised as follows:
- Fri 10:15 pm Milonga or Vals lesson, 45 min costs 12.5 euros, then a milonga until 2:00am free.
- Sat 1:15 pm Tango lab basically anything that Eric decides on the day, dancing in a small space, ocho cortada variations, sacadas, syncopated rhythms were the past topics, depending on numbers (50-200 people attend), 1 1/4 hours costs 15 euros and then a milonga from 3:00 pm until 3:00 am free. The only break is at 12:00 midnight for half an hour when Henry serves soup.
- Sun milonga only 12:00 midday - 3:00pm free. Then depending on flights etc you can go to Arnhem for another milonga from 4:00pm until you need to leave, with an official finish of 11:00pm) costs 5 euros.
Please note that you must be sure to be at EC well before 3:00pm on Saturday at El Corte if you do not attend the Tangolab because there is often many more people than the 250 people allowed in during the first wave of entry.
However if you choose to or unfortunately miss this first entry there is normally a parallel milonga (check the EC calendar), usually within a 15 minute walk from EC, please refer to the website. The second entry wave is later on in the evening, officially midnight.
The music and the milonga
The music is generally traditional with a sprinkling of other tracks, played in tandas without cortinas.
The floor can get very busy so you need to feel comfortable dancing in a crowded environment. The Line of Dance is observed closely and there no option for dancing without following the line of dance.
Final Comments
Why do I think you should visit EC?
- It is melting pot for some of the best dancers in Europe, so you get a chance to dance with a whole new crowd of high a quality partners. Much of the dancing is on a crowded floor so it is a chance to experience a BsAs floor in Europe.
- You get tuition from Eric. I would say whatever he teaches refers to the music and the variations of rhythm within it and not many teachers give the quality of lessons he gives.
However the most enduring reason is the spirit of the milonga that you feel when you visit. The busy milongas have over 300 people from all parts of Europe and further afield who go there to enjoy tango. They dance it, they talk it and they enjoy it and they want you to do the same.
People I have spoken to that shy into a corner the first time they go to a new place have found it easy to engage in the spirit that is El Corte and they surprise themselves by how much they embrace the spirit of the milonga that they feel is given to them by the people that attend.
~ Ant, 21st June 2011