1. Leo is Argentinian – born and raised in Avellaneda, Buenos Aires.
2. He started dancing Argentine Tango when he was 7 or 8 years old – his father taught him and for the first 7 years he only danced the Followers role.
3. His father – Leonardo Acosta Senior – was also a Tango teacher and milonga organiser. Some of Leo’s earliest memories are attending milongas as a small child and falling asleep under a table!
4. Leo’s family are a Tango family, so Leo remembers being constantly surrounded by dancers, poets, singers and musicians. He remembers the great Rodolfo Biagi coming to take tea at his parents house! Biagi arrived immaculately dressed, flanked by 2 enormous Doberman Pinscher dogs!
5. Leo is also a professionally trained Tango singer. He was trained by Alberto Podesta, a famous Tango singer who throughout his long career sang with many famous bands including Carlos di Sarli.
6. For 24 years, Leo was a nurse working in hospitals in Buenos Aires. At the peak of his career, he was assisting the renowned heart surgeon Favaloro, who pioneered the heart bypass operation.
7. Leo has danced Tango for over 48 years. He is a ‘Milonguero’, someone who embraces the culture of Tango in all its art forms to live.
8. Leo has taught Tango for over 25 years. he was persuaded to teach by his friends, who knew that he was one of the true milongueros in Buenos Aires and wanted to learn from him. Although reluctant at first, Leo started teaching and discovered his vocation in life.
9. Leo has been teaching in London for 16 years. He was the first teacher to introduce the milonguero style of Tango to London.
10. Leo is one of the most renowned teachers and organisers of Argentine Tango in the UK. As one of the founders of the London Argentine Tango School, he has now defined his teaching methodology so that more people can understand and enjoy the Tango he loves.
As publisher of his own book – the ABC of Argentine Tango – and creator of his own Teacher Training School, he carries on the legacy of his fathers memory and training.
Leo is a direct link to the many famous milongueros – friends of his fathers – that he met, talked with and learnt from. He has an extensive knowledge from his life experiences and is a true ‘milonguero’. He is very happy to have extended his activities to Bournemouth where he now lives and aims to turn Bournemouth into a centre for Tango in the UK!
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