Mission
I strive to excel in the various facets of this unique and beautiful dance by continuing to grow as a tango dancer/teacher/performer, organizer and ambassador. Through years of experience, study and research, I have gained invaluable knowledge of what tango dancers require to grow in their personal dance journey. From this understanding, I have built the foundation of my teaching methodology, art of performing, creating unique tango events, and bringing quality products to the community.
About Yuliana Basmajan
Discovering her passion for Argentine Tango in 2007, Yuliana abandoned all other dance forms and devoted herself to intense training and exploration of this complex and beautiful dance. With her dance partner, Brian Nguyen, Yuliana’s hard work and dedication catapulted her professional career when they won two Argentine Tango Salon US Championships in 2010 & 2011 and made the finals at the Mundial World Championship in Buenos Aires 4 years in a row. Brian and Yuliana are the only US couple to ever place at the Salon World Championship by taking home the bronze medal in 2011.
Yuliana has had the opportunity to perform with many world renowned tango dancers such as Carlos Copello, World Tango Salon Champion – Maximiliano Cristiani, Pancho Martinez Pey, Oliver Kolker, Donato Juarez, Octavio Fernandez, Jaimes Friedgen, Mauro Peralta, Danilo Maddalena, Sergio Almiron, Gabriel El Huracan, Ricardo Biggeri, Marcelo ‘El Chino’ Gutierrez, Varo Boyajyan, Dominic Bridge, and Meng Wang. She has taught and performed at several festivals, tango schools, tango clubs, and milongas in the US and around the world, including events such as: El Congreso in Toronto, Greek Island Tango Retreat, Armenia Tango Festival, Tijuana Tango Festival, San Diego Tango Festival, Fire & Ice Festival in Ann Arbor, Tucson Tango Festival, Valentango in Portland, Tango Mundo Festival in Palm Springs, Mercury Cafe in Denver, and La Nacional and Nocturne milongas in NYC. In 2018, Yuliana performed with Rojer Zalazar in Romper el Piso at the Arlene Schnitzner Concert Hall in Portland, Oregon and The Soraya Performing Arts Center in Northridge, California as part of renowned dancer and choreographer Natalia Hills’ company, Tangueros del Sur. She has also performed at Aram Khachaturian Musical Hall, the most prestigious performing arts center in Yerevan, Armenia. In 2019, Yuliana was on the judging panel at the Berlin Open Tango Contest and the Miami Tango Weekend Championship, and in 2020, at the Denver Mountain State Tango Challenge.
Additionally, she is the creator and organizer of the Southern California Tango Championship and Festival in Los Angeles, bringing competitors and social dancers together for a grand event that features world renowned instructors and orchestras. Over the years, this event has become the biggest international event in the US, attracting competitors from all around the world.
From 2009 to 2018, besides the tango championship and festival Yuliana hosted several other social events among which were Milonga Querida, one of the most prestigious milongas in Los Angeles, Milonga Luna and Divina Tango Weekend. Currently, Yuliana devotes her talents to teaching in LA, as well as teaching, judging, and performing abroad. She is the exclusive distributor of Regina tango shoes, imported from Italy.
