In 1997 the President and Mrs. Clinton made a state visit to Argentina. Although I am a special assistant to the President, I rarely travel on official business. I lobbied hard, however, to be included in the trip to Buenos Aires, but without success. On their return everyone who had traveled raved about the Tango shows they saw. Since I had started dancing Argentine Tango earlier that year, and I still am the only person on staff at the White House to do so, I really wanted to go.

State visits are usually reciprocal, so in December of 1998 we began to plan for a visit by President Menem in January 1999. State dinners are arranged by the White House Social Office, and coordinating wonderful entertainment is vital to the success of the event. The Social Secretary (like everyone I talk to) knows I am obsessed by Tango, so she asked that I help plan the entertainment.

Here in Washington we have a Tango ensemble of five musicians; bass, piano, cello and two violins: QuinTango. Occasionally they are joined by a bandoneon. This was a start. Then, at a Tango event at the Argentine embassy, Robert Duval mentioned to me that Pablo Veron would be visiting him early in January. Maybe we could get the best Tango dancer in the world (in my opinion) ) to dance at our event! I have danced in New York to the music of Raul Juarena and the NY Tango Trio. He is clearly the best bandoneon player living and performing in the US. A close friend of Raul, Eduardo Fernandez, is a dancer in the DC Tango community. Maybe we could get Raul to perform.

We began to talk to QuinTango, who were thrilled to be asked to play at the White House. Eduardo Fernandez promised to contact Raul in Uruguay where he was on tour promoting his new CD, Obsecion. He agreed to perform. I talked to Robert Duval and Luciana Pedraza (his fiancee) about Pablo Veron's visit. Things began to fall into place.

Our goal was to create a program which would reflect one of the wonderful truths of America - that people come here from all over the world. They bring with them their art and culture, and we adopt it and adapt it. The program brought together an ensemble of American musicians playing with Raul, born in Uruguay but now an American citizen; Argentine dancers and an American dancer. The best of ALL worlds!

We planned a program of seven parts: QuinTango playing LiberTango, two pieces with Raul playing, backed by QuinTango, two dances by Pablo Veron and Victoria Vieyra, one dance by Robert and Luciana, and finally, one dance with both couples. (Entertainment at state dinners rarely goes longer than 25 minutes.)

Raul sent his arrangements to QuinTango and they began to rehearse. Pablo preferred to dance his choreographed routines to recorded music. The musicians rehearsed at the White House on Sunday afternoon. On Monday I invited Robert, Luciana, Pablo, Ann Monte (his girlfriend), Victoria, and my boyfriend Steve to have lunch with me in the White House staff mess, just before rehearsing in the East Room. What a treat for me to sit with them all and talk about Tango and films in English, French and Spanish!

The East Room is the largest room in the White House, on the state floor. It has a great wood floor. For this performance we would not have a stage, but have the dancers perform level, with chairs for 160 guests around the space. The rehearsal went well for the musicians and dancers. Raul has been playing bandoneon for 40 years, and is also a brilliant arranger and conductor. We could hear QuinTango begin to sound more and more like an ensemble from BA. As I watched Pablo and Victoria perform some incredibly difficult moves with unbelievably complex footwork, I realized he was chewing gum as he danced . . . Clearly, his dancing not only looks effortless, it actually IS.

By 4 pm, we all rushed home to change for the black tie dinner. My escort was to be Metin Yazir, our wonderful Tango teacher from Turkey who lives in Munich and NY. (My boyfriend is a relative beginner at Tango and was resigned to this. He was to come later, for dessert and the entertainment.) By 6:30 pm we were fluffed and gorgeous, and on our way.

The White House invitation sets the tone for these elegant events. You already anticipate a very special evening. You drive your car (through barricades past check points) to the East Door of the White House. As you enter you are greeted by a Social Aide (a military officer who assists the President and First Lady and their guests at events). You walk down the East Colonnade, which is filled with flowers and candles, and past a gathering of the press. They were uninterested in us and in Pablo as well (being ignorant of dance) and only spoke to the political people. (Their loss!)

We were escorted to the state floor by a social aide, and were greeted by the Social Secretary, Capricia Marshall. We went to the East Room for cocktails (about 150 dinner guests), while the Clintons greeted President Menem in the private residence (the top two floors of the White House). When Pablo, Ann and Victoria arrived we gathered under the famous portrait of George Washington, which Dolly Madison saved from the fire in 1814. (We have since forgiven the British.)

Attendance at the dinner was so highly sought that for the first time in the Clinton administration, tables were set not only in the state dining room, but in the adjacent Red Room as well. The tables were beautiful, with red damask tablecloths, beautiful roses in many colors, and the famous red and gold presidential china. Metin and I were seated with members of President Menem's entourage. Dinner was delicious, and the perfect final touch was dessert - a frozen dulce de leche topped with chocolate Tango dancers and a chocolate palm tree. The White House pastry chef is famous for never repeating a dessert. At the end of dinner the US Army Strolling Strings (violins) entered and played between tables!

After dinner Social Aides directed us into the East Room, to seats at the very front. The room filled quickly with dinner guests and after-dinner guests, including Steve and Eduardo. The President, Mrs. Clinton and President Menem entered and we all sat. The announcer declared "an evening of Tango" and QuinTango struck up LiberTango, with great energy. We could hear the other guests give a little gasp of excitement as the music swept over the room!

Then, for me anyway, the grand moment - Pablo and Victoria danced. First a Tango, elegant, passionate, tender, sensual. Victoria's dress was midnight blue velvet, cut down to there and up to here . . . her hair molded into place with rhinestone pins, sexy black stilettos. Pablo was irresistible in tails, his hair slicked back. They swept around the dance floor executing one beautiful and exciting move after another. The footwork was dazzling. The mood of the dance changed with the music - one minute a furious exchange of ganchos, the next a romantic and sexy slow embrace, then elegant lifts and spins. Victoria is a sylph! Pablo is a brilliant dancer and choreographer! I wanted it to never end. (I can still see it when I close my eyes.) Next they danced a Milonga with style and grace. It was fantastic. The audience exploded with applause and cheers of "bravo"! A lot of bureaucratic hearts which had never contemplated dancing Argentine Tango were beating faster with the thought of how fabulous it would be to dance with one of them . . .

Now it was Raul's turn, and not only was the music wonderful, but it was fascinating what it did to the guests. We were seated across from most of the Argentines, and at the sound of the bandoneon their faces lit up and they became animated and happy. It was the sound of home. Raul and QuinTango played beautifully. Then Robert Duvall and Luciana Pedraza danced a Tango salon style. Although he said on the Letterman show that he did not dance particularly well, we thought it was elegant - it is just different from the show Tango Pablo dances. Of course it helps that Luciana has long, beautiful dancer's legs and Robert has perfect dancer's posture.

Raul played again, this time with fantastic improvisations - it really was a virtuoso performance by a master musician. Then the four dancers came out and danced together to the ensemble. It was difficult to decide where to look as the two couples danced different styles, but both with passion and grace!

At the end of the performance the President, Mrs. Clinton and President Menem got up to thank the performers. President Clinton told Robert "I will never look at you the same way again!"

President Menem was very moved by the performance and President Clinton's remarks. He spoke with emotion about his youth in Buenos Aires, following Tango musicians, singers and dancers, and what it meant to him to hear Tango played in the White House, the heart of America!

As the two presidents and first lady began to move out of the room, QuinTango began to play again. President Menem took Mrs. Clinton into his arms and began to dance. President Clinton began to dance with an Argentine lady - it was not Tango, but he was very good at dancing to the music (remember, he is a lifelong musician). Next President Menem danced with Secretary Albright, and then WE began to dance as well; Metin and I, Steve and Marga Mitchell (Raul's wife) Eduardo and a very elegant Argentine lady who is a senior government official, Pablo and Victoria, Robert and Luciana. It was like a dream to me to experience my two great passions - serving the President, in the White House, and dancing Tango, in that beautiful room, to lovely music, with wonderful dancers around me. It was magic - and funny, when the President bumped into Pablo and Victoria, and Pablo realized who it was . . .

We danced Tango for about 15 minutes, and then, unfortunately, QuinTango stopped. The moment was so perfect we would have danced there until our feet gave out! So we moved with the other guests out to the cross hall and foyer, where a Marine Band ensemble was playing social dance music. Of course, we all started to dance again. Steve is a great Swing dancer, and should be a social director somewhere. He introduced himself to Salma Hayak (actress, Desperado) and then introduced her to Pablo and suggested they dance. When Salma said "Oh, but I don't know how" Steve said "Trust me, if he's leading, you WILL know how!"

Steve then danced with Victoria and Ann and other guests. At lunch, Pablo had mentioned he dances Swing, so when the ensemble struck up some jiving Benny Goodman I asked him for a dance - what fun! At the end he said to me "you are a very good dancer." Imagine - Pablo Veron told me I am a very good dancer . . . OKAY, OKAY, it was Swing, not Tango, but still! Eduardo danced, Marga danced.

At midnight we were finally the last guests to leave. We had definitely enlivened the party, since many Argentine officials did NOT dance Tango, and most of the Americans did not dance at all!

The White House party was over, but the evening was too enchanting to end yet. We decided to go to Diversite, a DC nightclub with a Milonga on Mondays. When I called them at 11:30 they said, "but we will probably close at midnight, most of the dancers are leaving." I said "Tell them all to stay and you HAVE to stay open - I am bringing the most famous Tango dancer in the world to dance there!" We arrived after midnight, and they stayed open just for us. About 20 people remained. (Many apologies to the tangueros who did not know we were coming, and left.) After an initial flurry of requests for Pablo's autograph, everyone settled down. We got drinks and began to dance, everyone with everyone. You should see Pablo dance Salsa! We were still euphoric from our White House experience and everything seemed fantastic.

When Pablo asked me to dance it was (again) a dream. We danced three Tangos and it was just what you would expect - elegant, beautiful, challenging . . . his lead is light as a feather, but unmistakable. He bowed and said it was "very nice" and I am still savoring that. He talked to us about how he started dancing, what he likes best, learning to Lindy, The Tango Lesson. . . !

At 3 am, exhausted and deliriously happy, we piled into Steve's limo. We took the others to their hotel and kissed them goodbye, then reluctantly ended this amazing evening!

I hope you enjoy my reporting of this wonderful event, giving you an inside look. In a conversation this week with a lady who attends most state dinners, she said "I believe this was the most beautiful and exciting entertainment we have EVER had at the White House!" I am thrilled to have been part of arranging Tango in the White House. I will always remember this unforgettable evening!

I have served this President and First Lady for 6 years, since January 1993. I have been privileged to attend many elegant, historic events at the White House. This state dinner was the most fabulous event of my life. (So far . . .)

January, 1999