A SIZZLING version of the tango is set to send pulses racing when it comes to York next month.

The sexy Tango Argentino is the latest dance to be taught in the city following the resurgence of the pastime because of BBC's popular Strictly Come Dancing programme.

But organisers insist the dance is "strictly not ballroom" as it was originally conceived in the cafes and brothels of Buenos Aries and requires more than a little passion.

Professional teachers Andres 'Tanguito' Cejas and Genoveva Fernandez, who come from the Argentine capital, have performed the dance all over the world and are running a seven-week course from Wednesday, February 9, at the York Railway Institute, in Queen Street.

A taster class will be held on February 2, at 7.15pm.

Organiser Will Swales said: "People get to know each other very quickly with this dance."

"It's very sexy and very intimate. The dance was later picked up by the ballroom dancing people and done in a much wider space.

"The original version we teach can be done in the front room, because it was developed so couples could dance in between tables and chairs in cafes.

"It's very intricate and involves a lot of improvisation."

Mr Swales said people could go to the lessons with or without a partner. There is no official dress code, but the men are advised to dress all in black and the women in bright colours to get into the spirit of the dance.

This original tango was born at the start of the 1900s in the suburbs of Argentina where migrants from around the world converged to work in the burgeoning meat-packing industry.

The dance regsined popularity after it featured in the 1992 Al Pacino film Scent Of A Woman.

For more information phone 01904 679826 or 01904 639922.

Updated: 10:16 Tuesday, January 18, 2005