Cheesman Pavilion

Denver Tango Festivals from 1999 - 2015

Denver Tango Festivals: 1999 - 2015

The mission statement for the Denver Tango festivals was always "By dancers; for dancers." 

The needs and desires of the dancers should be the priority. To that end, three things are essential: 

  • Most important: the quality of the DJ & the music
  • Organize of the dance floor to enable good dance flow
  • Provide everyone a seat so that the cabaceo is easy.
Vintate Tom
Vintage Tango Teacher

T om produced the Denver Tango Festivals for 15 years, Memorial & Labor Day weekends. These were some of the largest tango festivals in the US during the first decade of the 2000s. Tom was happy to take a break for 7 years, during which he recovered his passion for teaching and dancing Argentine Tango. 

Starting in 2023, the Denver Close-Encounters Tango Festival is a return to the original mission, which emphasized the social dancing of the golden era milongas of Buenos Aires.

Tom Stermitz   
303-725-5963   
[email protected]

Other Events

2026 Denver Close Encounters

Cheesman Pavilion
The Denver Close Encounters festival is for you if you love traditional Buenos Aires style social dancing, and are good at navigating in a close embrace. Many of us experienced tango in Buenos Aires in the 1990s and 2000s when the older Milongueros from the 1940s had returned to the dance floor. Encuentros are inspired by the milonguero style of dancing, and Encuentro fans are a bridge between that older generation to the younger generations.

2025 Denver Close Encounters Festival

Cheesman Park Milonga
May 2025 Tango weekend blending an Encuentro, a Marathon and the excitement of the Milongas of Buenos Aires. Four days of tango with one group of fellow tango fanatics. The emphasis is on Close-embrace dancing and traditional social codes. Top DJs are selected for their sensitivity to the passion and energy of the dancers and their love of the famous Golden Era orchestras.

Encuentro Codes, Customs & Traditions

Cheesman Park Milonga
We style the Denver Close Encounters event in the tradition of the classic Buenos Aires milongas of the 1940s, 1990s and 2000s. This means we strive to follow the historic customs of good navigation and lanes, using the cabaceo to request a dance, and walking the followers back to their tables. This festival is for you if you love Buenos Aires style social dancing, and are good at navigating in a close embrace.

Brigitta Winkler Boulder, Denver - May 2025

Brigitta Winkler & Angelika Fischer
Brigitta Winkler returns to Colorado in May 2025 for tango workshops and exploration. Enjoy a weekend of Tango May 17 & 18 in Boulder exploring the theme of "Round Trip & Roles in Tango." As an extraordinarily gifted teacher and tango dancer, Brigitta has been leading, following and exchanging roles in tango. Brigitta will also teach in Denver on Tuesday, May 20 at the Denver Turnverein, and Thursday, May 22 workshops at the Colorado Dancesport NORTH. We have many visitors coming for the week, and a special invited DJ, Andrew Brown from Seattle for the Saturday May 17 Milonga at the Avalon Tango Studio.