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Revision as of 08:16, 17 January 2021 by Dumelow (talk | contribs) (ref)(diff) ← Previous revision | Latest revision (diff) | Newer revision → (diff) Argentine tango dancer| Juan Carlos Copes | |
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 Copes performs at the 2011 Tango Day, in Buenos Aires, with his daughter Johana | |
| Born | (1931-05-31)31 May 1931 Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Died | 16 January 2021(2021-01-16) (aged 89) Buenos Aires, Argentina |
| Occupation(s) | Tango dancer, choreographer, and instructor |
| Years active | 1945-2015 |
Juan Carlos Copes (May 31, 1931 – January 16, 2021) was an Argentine tango dancer, choreographer, and performer. He was the first to create choreographed tango stage shows and contributed to the worldwide revival of tango as a dance form after 1970.
Life
Copes was born in Mataderos, Buenos Aires on May 31, 1931 and grew up in Villa Pueyrredón. He began dancing at milongas in Buenos Aires at a young age. When he was 17 years old, he took the 14-year-old Maria Nieves as his dance partner; the two would soon become lovers. Nieves described Copes as a poor dancer initially, but said he improved quickly. An early professional performance was with the Francisco Canaro orchestra in 1955.
Copes married Maria Nieves in Las Vegas in 1964, but the marriage did not last and ended in 1973. They continued to dance together, and Maria Nieves described the hatred between them as improving their art. During their four decade partnership they became known as the "Fred Astaire and Ginger Rogers of tango".
During the 1960s, Copes was instrumental in creating the modern tango show concept in Buenos Aires. Copes and Nieves starred in a 1962 production at the Alvin Theatre on Broadway as well as appearing on numerous episodes of The Ed Sullivan Show from 1962 to 1964. He also danced at the Julliard School, Stanford University, the University of Chicago and the Sorbonne University.
Copes choreographed and starred in the musical Tango Argentino in Paris in 1983, which went on to receive excellent reviews on Broadway. The reintroduction of democracy to Argentina led to a renaissance in Argentine Tango in which Copes and Nieves were leading figures.
Copes' notable stage credits also include his work as chief choreographer of Ástor Piazzolla's María de Buenos Aires (1968), in the Spanish National Dance Company's Dance Icons series (1993), and a leading role in Manuel González Gil's Entre Borges y Piazzolla (Between Borges and Piazzolla, 1997).
Copes worked on seven films. His credits include Raúl de la Torre's musical, Funes, un gran amor (1993), and in a role as chief choreographer in Tango, la película (Tango, the Movie), a 1998 film by Carlos Saura.
He had a daughter, Johana, with his second wife (who was 20 years his junior) in 1976, and he began to dance with her on stage in 1994.
His pupils included Robert Duvall, Julio Bocca, Eleonora Cassano, Mikhail Baryshnikov and Liza Minnelli. He also taught some of the dance instructors at Fred Astaire Dance Studios.
His often problematic relationship with Maria Nieves was depicted in the 2015 documentary film O Nosso Último Tango ("Our Last Tango") by German Kral.
Copes retired from dancing in 2015 for health and financial reasons.
Copes died from COVID-19 on January 16, 2021 at a Buenos Aeries hospital during the COVID-19 pandemic in Argentina. He had first contracted the disease in December 2020.
References
- Totango Archived 2010-04-28 at the Wayback Machine
- ^ "Juan Carlos Copes, a historic tango dancer, died of coronavirus". Explica. 16 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- "Mort du danseur argentin Juan Carlos Copes, légende du tango". Le Monde (in French). 17 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ "Muere por coronavirus célebre bailarín argentino de tango Juan Carlos Copes". France 24. 16 January 2021. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ Un tango más (2015), documentary film by German Kral
- ^ "Muore di Covid Juan Carlos Copes, re del tango". rainews (in Italian). Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ Portugal, Rádio e Televisão de. "Morreu o coreógrafo do tango argentino Juan Carlos Copes". Morreu o coreógrafo do tango argentino Juan Carlos Copes (in Portuguese). Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ "Juan Carlos Copes". To Tango. Archived from the original on 2010-04-28.
- "The couple who saved tango". The New European. 27 September 2017. Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- "Morreu o coreógrafo do tango argentino Juan Carlos Copes, vítima da covid-19". TVI24 (in Portuguese). Retrieved 17 January 2021.
- ^ Juan Carlos Copes
- "A los 89 años, murió el bailarín de tango Juan Carlos Copes luego de haber contraído coronavirus en el mes de diciembre". infobae (in European Spanish). 16 January 2021. Retrieved 2021-01-16.
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