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Tango Workshop Weekend with Tommy Smith & Sierra EmrySalt Lake City | August 23–24, 2025
We are absolutely thrilled to welcome our long-time friends Tommy Smith and Sierra Emry to Salt Lake City for their premiere full-weekend workshop!
Known nationwide for his dynamic, high-energy DJ sets, Tommy Smith now joins forces with the incredible Sierra Emry to share their unique teaching style with our community. This is the first time Salt Lake gets to experience their instruction in a weekend format—and it’s going to be something truly special.
Come deepen your tango with guidance from two dancers who blend passion, precision, and a fresh perspective. Whether you're refining your fundamentals or exploring new layers of connection and musicality, this weekend will leave you inspired and energized.
Additionally, we are privileged to have live music during the Saturday night milonga with the fabulous band, Phonograph Blue!
This is not just another workshop—it’s an experience. Don’t miss it!
Workshop Schedule & Pricing:
Saturday, August 23:
- �1:00–2:15 PM | Class I – $25�
- 2:30–3:45 PM | Class II – $25�
- 8:00 PM–12:00 AM | Grand Milonga – $30�DJ: Tommy Smith�
- Live Music: PHONOGRAPH BLUE�
- Special Tango Performance
Sunday, August 24:
- �1:00–2:15 PM | Class III – $25�
- 2:30–3:45 PM | Class IV – $25�
- 4:00–6:00 PM | Guided Practica – $15�DJ: Larisa Yaroshchuk� - Get real-time feedback and hands-on guidance to solidify what you’ve learned.
Full Weekend Pass: $130
Save and get the complete experience by purchasing the full weekend package!
To register, send payment to:�Erica Hansen on Venmo�🔗 https://www.venmo.com/u/Erica-Hansen-82
Class Menu-
Class I: Here Comes the BOOM
�There’s a new tango orchestra in town—and you’re a member! In this class, we’ll be exploring a variety of tango rhythms, both playing them with our bodies (not clapping!) and dancing them with a partner. You’ll find a new depth of musicality as you explore both sides of the orchestra/dancer relationship.
Class II: Boleos and BoleNOs
�Having boleos in your toolbox gives you powerful options for musicality—particularly punctuation. Starting with the Boleo From Nowhere™, we’ll explore the fundamental concepts that drive the movement. The name of the game is honing our spiral, timing, and shaping of the free leg.
Class III: Dynamics, Piano, and Biagi – A Love Story
�Highlighting contrast in the music with contrast in our movements is a beautiful thing, leading to a dance that feels both dynamic and striking in how it feels and how it looks. We’ll use this menage à trois of musicality, instrumentation, and orchestra as a basis to explore how to shape our dance.�(Psst... a few other orchestras might decide to join in on the fun.)
Class IV: Rebounds Vs Crosses: Throwdown of the Century
�Ok, so technically tango movements can't fight each other—so let's do the next best thing, and learn the difference between these similar ideas with wildly different feelings. We’ll learn how to spiral together, how to use space when it’s present, and how to respond when it’s absent.
About Tommy & Sierra
Tommy’s Bio:
�Tommy discovered tango in early 2012 and immediately became obsessed. Since then, his love for exploring both the technical and emotional facets of tango has grown. His skills and interests run the full spectrum: teaching, DJing, performing, and organizing.
Constantly seeking out top tango instructors to train with, Tommy is committed to the notion that learning tango is a journey, not a destination.
Tommy brings his analytic and organized teaching style into the tango classroom, drawing from extensive experience as a professor of engineering. He values deep investigation into the “whys” and “hows” of tango movement, striving to present concepts that both reinforce each other organically and are accessible to students of all levels.
He teaches comfortable and connected social tango, emphasizing embrace, thoughtfulness, and musicality.
With over 13 years of tango teaching experience, Tommy has taught in multiple locations around Boise, as well as regionally at events such as Boulder’s UniTango Festival, Missoula’s Spring Tango, and Salt Lake City’s Mountain Milonga.
Tommy and Sierra are thrilled to have been invited to teach in Salt Lake City!
Sierra’s Bio:
�Sierra’s life has been steeped in music since she was born. Coming from generations of musicians primed her to instantly fall in love with tango music as soon as she heard her first song: Canaro’s “Poema.” Love of the dance quickly followed, as she found herself seeking out every opportunity to learn and dance tango.
She discovered that sharing her love of the dance and helping others develop theirs came naturally, and so teaching became another instrument in the orchestra of her tango experience.
Sierra’s teaching style prioritizes clarity of instruction, seeking to deliver material in a way that most directly cuts to the heart of the concept. She views stability and power as the foundation upon which connection and musical expression is built.
Exploring and teaching the interplay of connection and musicality in the dance is something Sierra loves, as she considers the close connection of tango as a free conduit for the exchange of musical ideas.
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Event Venue & Nearby Stays
E.W. Garbett Center for Choral Music, 700 N 200 W, Salt Lake City, UT 84103-1819, United States
