The Perth Tango Festival represents one of the most interesting events on the international tango scene, an occasion capable of bringing together community, live music, and passion for Argentine tango in the unique setting of Western Australia.
This year’s edition will take place from 15 to 22 April 2026
The decision to present the Perth Festival happened by coincidence — from a mirada exchanged during theTarbes Festival: an opportunity, as often happens in tango. An encounter that became a project, an intuition opening international doors, a dialogue that crosses continents.
Tango is not just a dance: it’s an opportunity to discover new places, travel, find inspiration and share ideals. In an increasingly globalised world, the language of tango can become the ground on which to build bridges, create connections, and foster new cultural collaborations.
Organised in Perth, the Festival attracts dancers, musicians, and enthusiasts from all over the world, offering a rich program of milongas, concerts, cultural gatherings, and moments of sharing. In this “frame”, tango is valued for its artists as well as social importance, promoting culture cohesion.
For more information, you can visit our dedicated events page by clicking here.
A Community-Ignited Festival
At the heart of the Perth Tango Festival there is strong associative work and a clear vision: to create a high-quality space where tango can be experienced in all its dimensions, from the dance floor to listening to music, from the social aspect to the artistic one.
To better understand the spirit and vision of the Festival, we posed a few questions to its organiser.
Interview with Adriaan Bal – Director of the Perth Tango Festival
Adriaan, how was the Perth Tango Festival born, and what need or vision inspired you to create it?
Adriaan Bal: “The Perth Tango Festival grew from a simple recognition: Perth is geographically remote, but our tango community is serious, committed and culturally curious. If we wanted deeper artistic exchange, we couldn’t just wait for it to arrive — we had to create it.
The original vision was twofold. First, to bring high-level international artists to Western Australia in a way that felt accessible rather than exclusive. For many Perth dancers, regular travel to Europe or Buenos Aires simply isn’t realistic. Rather than expecting our community to chase international standards abroad, we chose to bring that standard here.
Second, to position Perth not as “far away”, but as a destination — on the edge of the Indian Ocean — where tango communities could strengthen their connections and expand participation nationally and internationally.”
The Festival manages to attract participants from different parts of the world. What do you think makes the tango experience in Perth special compared to other international contexts?
Adriaan Bal: “Perth is unusual. It has the infrastructure of a developed city, but the scale of a smaller community. That combination matters.
In larger international festivals, people can feel anonymous. In Perth, visiting dancers are genuinely seen. You will dance with people you met in class. You will recognise faces across events. Conversations continue. There’s less noise, more contact.
Geography also shapes psychology. When someone travels from Europe, Asia or the eastern states of Australia to come here, they’ve made a conscious choice. That intention changes the atmosphere. People arrive committed, curious and ready to participate — not just consume.
And then there’s Western Australia itself. Our coastline, our light, the open space, the Indian Ocean — it creates a different rhythm. The Festival sits within an environment many consider one of the world’s best-kept secrets. For interstate and Asian visitors in particular, the Festival often becomes the reason to come — and an extended holiday becomes the reward. They don’t just attend a tango event; they experience Western Australia.
That combination — serious dancing within a relaxed, expansive natural setting — is difficult to replicate elsewhere. It gives the Festival a distinct identity: high artistic standard without metropolitan intensity.”
The Perth Tango Festival program is particularly rich and diverse.
Can you tell us what the key highlights of this edition are and what kind of experience you would like to offer participants, both from an artistic and a human perspective?
Adriaan Bal: “Artistically, the centrepiece is live music. Having Hyperion Ensemble with vocalists Marisol Martínez and Lucas Boock transforms the week. When an orchestra is breathing in front of you, dancing becomes interpretation rather than routine.
We’re also hosting Gabriel Ponce and Analía Morales, alongside Noelia Hurtado, and Melbourne-based artists Fabio Robles and Michelle Di Monte — creating a strong blend of international and Australian dancers.
The week is structured intentionally: intimate fringe milongas frame an intensive Gala Weekend of performances, workshops and a public concert at our heritage Perth Town Hall, extending tango beyond our existing community.
Workshops build progressively, private lessons deepen the experience, and social events — including a picnic milonga in one of the world’s largest and most beautiful inner-city parks — anchor the Festival in our natural environment.
If we succeed, dancers won’t just remember figures. They’ll remember connection — to music, to partners, and to the wider tango community.”
Live Music: Hyperion Ensemble
One of the central elements of the Perth Tango Festival is live music, entrusted this year Hyperion Ensemble, the orchestra invited as guests of the Festival.
Hyperion presents an artistic project that engages in dialogue with the tango tradition, reinterpreting it with contemporary sensitivity, great attention to listening, and a strong musical identity.
An invitation born by chance, as often happens in tango
The story that brings the Hyperion Ensemble to the Perth Tango Festival began almost by chance, as often happens in the tango world.
It is Bruno Fiorentini who tells the story, with the natural ease of someone who has travelled half the world with his orchestra.
” Adriaan was in the audience during a concert we perfprmed in 2019 at the Kuala Lumpur Theatre. At the time we didn’t know him yet. Then last year we met again at the Tarbes Festival, and that’s when the idea of creating this project came about. It will be our first time in Australia and we are excited.”
And indeed, the ensemble has already travelled widely.
South America, North America, Europe — their music has crossed many borders.
“Actually, we are still missing China and Japan,” Bruno Fiorentini adds with a smile. “But with the help of our manager Marina, I believe we will eventually get there as well.”
Two milongas and one concert
The festival program includes two milongas and one concert, two different settings that require a carefully balanced musical approach.
Bruno Fiorentini explains this very clearly:
“We always try to balance the repertoire between the great rhythmic tangos of the 1940s – like D’Arienzo or Troilo – and slightly later works, such as the later Troilo from the 1970s. In this way we can speak both to those who love a very rhythmic tango and to those who prefer a more musically elaborate style.”
The concert, on the other hand, will also open itself to a broader audience, not necessarily composed of only tango dancers.
Pianist Marina Kiseleva, who also oversees the artistic organisation of the ensemble, explains:
“In the concert, besides tangos and Piazzolla, we will also perform film music by Ennio Morricone and some Latin American standards. Mariasol will sing Bésame Mucho, Quizás Quizás Quizás, and Perfidia.
These are not tangos, but they have become part of the Latin musical imagination. We will also feature another voice, Lucas Boock, who will perform classics such as All of Me and Summertime. The idea is to offer a broader musical experience also for audiences who do not dance tango.”
The voice within the orchestra: a language that unites
An important element in the sound of the ensemble is the voice of Mariasol Martínez.
Bruno Fiorentini emphasises how, in the tango tradition, the singer is not a separate figure from the orchestra but an integral part of its sound.
“In classical tango most of the repertoire is sung, but the singer is not a star dominating the stage – they are part of the orchestra itself. In Mariasol’s case there is a strong artistic personality, but she always maintains a perfect balance within the sound of the ensemble.”
For the Argentine singer, the meaning of this work lies precisely in keeping alive the repertoire of the great tango masters.
Marisol Martìnez: “We are fortunate to interpret today the works of the great composers of tango. Performing and singing them today, in festivals and milongas around the world, in a renewed way. It is our way of paying tribute to those extraordinary orchestras.”
What strikes her the most, however, is the reaction of audiences and dancers.
Marisol Martìnez: “When we perform, we see people embracing, closing their eyes, truly living the music. The passion passes through the body and reaches both those who listen and those who dance. It is something very powerful that goes beyond differences between countries and cultures.
Tango is an idiom, a language that unites people from different countries. When we meet in a milonga or a concert, beyond languages and cultures, we find ourselves sharing the same passion.”
Marina Kiseleva also highlights how the relationship with dance is fundamental in shaping the music.
“I started dancing tango before playing it. That helps a lot: when you play, you know what dancers are looking for and you try to interpret the music in a way that the rhythm truly reaches their feet.”
Bruno Fiorentini concludes with a reflection that broadens the perspective even further.
“Tango is a language that is now spoken all over the world. It was born between Buenos Aires and the Río de la Plata, but today it connects communities in many countries — much like jazz, which started in New Orleans and then became an international language.”
And perhaps this is the deepest meaning of festivals like the one in Perth: creating places where musicians, dancers and enthusiasts can meet, recognising each other in a common language that continues to travel from one continent to another.
Faitango recognises itself in this role of communicator, amplifying a voice that represents communities. I am happy to be part of it and to share the connections that tango continues to bring into our lives.
Happy tango to everyone.
Barbara Savonuzzi
