"Creative! Fun! Musical! Conversational!" These are some of the words used to describe Judy's dancing and teaching. Throughout her life, she's been doing one dance or another - ballet, the Tahitian tamure, salsa, ballroom, west/east coast swing. And then she discovered tango! Real Tango! Judy's been dancing tango since 1996, having started her studies with Clay Nelson and continuing with all the wonderful teachers coming through Portland. She has been especially influenced by Luciana Valle, Alicia Pons, Paulo Arujo, Nito and Elba, Komala and Stephan, and, of course, Portland's Alex Krebs. When she's in Argentina, she studies with Susana Miller, Maria Blanco (footwork), and Aurora Lubitz (technique).

Besides performing locally, Judy has taken up leading, teaches classes and privates from both lead and follow points of view, and encourages her students to learn both. She considers tango a "sensuous serious/fun meditation for two who become one." She dances milonguero, salon, and nuevo style tango and helps her students to develop their own tango personalities to release their "joie de vivre" through relaxation, creation and connection.

Judy can be reached at 503-650-8877 or merahistar@gmail.com