"Tango is unique, so different from any other popular music in terms of form, because it is so introspective," said Luis Bravo, the company's creator-director. "And it is magic; once you experience it, you do not forget it."

The company, which includes 14 dancers and 11 orchestra musicians, is heading for the Hawai'i Theatre Thursday to launch a 2003 tour that will circle the globe, including stops in Korea, Japan, Taiwan and Mexico, and cities such as Los Angeles, Las Vegas, Miami, Palm Beach and Seattle. Broadway won't get this edition till 2004.

"We've had amazing receptions over seven years of touring," said Bravo, who interrupted a rehearsal for a telephone interview from Buenos Aires. "It's been fantastic wherever we've been."

The provocative, sensual show displays classic tango, Argentine-style, in its original, seductive glory, with colorful and erotic costumes accenting soulful, sizzling artistry. It goes well beyond the ballroom dancing wizardry one might learn; it is ultimately exhibitionist and flashy, to bring out the spirit and sexuality of the dance.

"It's nostalgic and dramatic," Bravo said of his repertoire. "Whatever we do, it's a different show each time when different performers dance.

If folks watching hula should keep their eyes on the hands, as the song says, where should spectators look when tango dancers are sashaying to and fro?

"Everything," Bravo said without hesitation. "Every little move of the hand, one eyebrow, the way you look at your partner, all of this is important. There are so many subliminal messages — at least 50 — that can tell a whole story in just a few minutes."

But do not try it at home, he laughed. "Takes lots of practice. Besides, the chemistry will be missing. In Argentina, we all grow with the dance. Start slowly, and keep at it."

Bravo takes pride in the fact that his cast is 100 percent Argentine — natives who have adopted the dance and now are sharing their culture with audiences abroad.

When "Forever Tango" played the Walter Kerr Theatre on Broadway in 1977, it set a record and became the longest-running tango show on the Great White Way. It also ran for 92 weeks in San Francisco.