Marcos and Ruta are... frankly they are the place to learn Argentine Tango. Or rather - they are…read morethe people from whom to learn Argentine Tango. Because the nature of tango is that it is a relationship, something that occurs between two people - a connection.
(A bit of background first:) Different from all other types of ballroom dancing, the best thing about tango is this connection. All dances have some degree of connection, but in tango the dance itself IS the connection. And, this isn't something that can be copied through learning more "moves" or by rote drilling of steps. You know the stereotype of tango dancers - lithe, graceful like a cat? Yeah... just learning a few foot patterns won't get you that. You know, I know it's true. It takes changing the WAY in which you walk altogether. Which, actually, is not impossible. But, that's where Marcos and Ruta come in.
To really get "there", you need technique. You need help correcting your form, feeling where your body is, improving your balance. Both Marcos and Ruta are amazing at the different parts of this.
Partly thanks to her background as a professional ballerina, Ruta has this ability to gently correct your posture with her hands and make everything fall into place. Its always amazing to me how I can feel frustrated, not quite on balance and struggling with a move, and yet unable to see how else I can do it. And then Ruta comes along, makes 2-3 minute adjustments (we're talking just milimeters), and my whole body alignment falls into place and everything becomes effortless. It's like magic.
As for Marcos, he compliments this by doing the same thing, but from within the "flow" of the dance. Finding the way to move within the dance from position to position, and "fall into" the music - he works the same magic as Ruta. Together they get the whole picture - you can't have one without the other.
As for who they are, both are incredible people. Real, down-to-earth, kind, playful, and wise. Taking lessons with them is really like building a new friendship - they want to connect with you and know you individually, if you want to back.
Within the tango community, they are also movers and shakers, organizing the first every US-based International Tango Summit, and laying the groundwork for organizing, connecting, and standardizing the tango community to make it more accessible to the general public.
Price-wise, they are also the best bang-for-your-buck on the market. I've looked around and hopped from a few different laces, and the individual attention, as well as length of their lessons and practica afterward is unrivaled for the price. And, they always have ways for you to get more or less engaged, according to what you want to do.
I can't recommend enough.