Tesshas always loved dancing, starting jazz ballet as a teenager progressing to salsa and tango in the salon style in 1998. Neville inspired her to start close embrace tango in 2014 and after a 10 year break has found her passion. "Tango is a such a beautiful graceful expression and way to communicate with another person in an extraordinary way." Chris' enthusiasm for tango is obvious, and he is frequently out enjoying social dancing around Wellington. Chris spent the last few years dancing in one of the southernmost tango communities in the world, Dunedin! His unique style of tango as well as his warm and generous nature come through in his dancing. Chris sees himself not so much as a teacher but as a fellow dancer sharing his knowledge and love of tango with others.
Merran has been dancing tango since 2012, and has been with Tango del Alma since 2013. She is a very popular dancer, whether it is in NZ or Argentina. Her personality means that she brings wit, cheerfulness and a lovely personality to the team.
Victor started as a new student with Tango del Alma in 2014. His tango travels both in NZ and Buenos Aires, give him a deep sense of the tango style he loves to dance. During 2018, he enjoyed assisting the team each week in the beginners class. His calm, quiet, and encouraging personality make him an excellent teacher.
Both Merran and Victor are keen and well travelled tango dancers, always taking every opportunity to attend masterclasses in NZ and Buenos Aires, and continue to add their excellent teaching skills to the Tango del Alma team.
In 2022, Craig and Regine stepped back from teaching group classes after 9 years. However they continue to support Tango del alma, are available for private lessons, and they also run the free weekly milonga on Thursday lunchtimes at The Fringe Bar on Allen Street.
Craig & Regine Barkwith'shearts were captured by Argentine Tango in 2006. At that time they were living in Palmerston North, and had been studying ballroom and latin dancing. After a basic tango course, fell in love with the dance and music of tango. They moved to Wellington in 2007 and began with classes taught by Neville Waisbrod, the founder of Tango del Alma, and then joined the Tango del Alma teaching team in 2013. They have travelled to Buenos Aires multiple times, and their dancing style is very indicative of their time spent studying under Alicia Pons, whether she is in Buenos Aires, USA, or NZ. Their love of travel has been combined with their deep passion for tango and this has meant they have danced tango in Italy, Germany, USA, Australia, and Argentina. During their travels, they have taught classes in the USA, in Charleston and Augusta.