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Broadway's 'Tango' isn't worthy of mirror-ball trophy

You don't need to have watched a single episode of Dancing With the Stars to spot the reality TV transplants in the new Broadway production of Forever Tango (* * ½ out of four).

Karina Smirnoff and Maksim Chmerkovskiy, the Ukrianian-born hoofers whose flashy moves and romantic history — they were engaged a few years ago for about nine months — have titillated Dancing fans, are actually only guest stars in the show, which opened Sunday at the Walter Kerr Theatre. They'll end their run Aug. 11, in plenty of time for the fall television season.

But at a recent preview, the pair stood apart from the other performers, and not just because of the hoots of recognition that greeted their appearance. The tango is a dance that relies heavily on the physical and sensual rapport and tension between partners. The assorted couples in the regular cast — many of whom have appeared in previous stagings of Tango, which creator/director Luis Bravo conceived in the early '90s — lock into each other with an intensity that might seem almost satirical to the uninitiated.

Smirnoff and Chmerkovskiy, in contrast, appear much more focused on seducing the audience. Positioned front and center in ensemble numbers that close both acts, they're the designated exhibitionists, mugging — Smirnoff thrashing her hair, Chmerkovskiy flaunting his hulking torso in a shirt unbuttoned down to his navel — as their colleagues delicately smolder. Their dancing may be technically impressive, but like the submedium that made them famous, it lacks wit, restraint and nuance.

Those qualities are fundamental to the art form that Tango celebrates; and in spite of its cheesy packaging, they are evident intermittently. The dancing couples, who choreograph their own work, evoke distinct personalities: Mariana Bojanich and Sebastian Ripoll are elegant and deliberate, Soledad Buss and Cesar Peral ethereal and athletic, Aldana Silveyra and Diego Ortega tempestuous, "Zumo" Leguizamon and Belen Bartolome frenetic.

Natalia Turelli and Ariel Manzanares provide charming comic relief with jaunty, character-driven routines, while the preternaturally spry Victoria Galoto and the fiery Marcela Duran offer a study in contrasting diva styles.

There's certainly no shortage of eye candy here, from the dancers' strong, often refreshingly voluptuous bodies to Argemira Affonso's tailored, glittering costumes, which immerse the young performers in old-world glamour. The men's hair is slicked back until it sparkles; the women manage gravity-defying heels with casual confidence.

An orchestra of distinguished-looking, virtuosic musicians is prominently featured, playing lush, romantic instrumentals. They're joined by another guest, veteran salsa singer Gilberto Santa Rosa, on such classics as El Dia Que Me Quieras and Si Te Dijeron. (Luis Enrique will take over starting July 30.)

Santa Rosa's rough-smooth baritone sounds a bit worn around the edges, but his suave, slightly grandiose presence proved just as irresistible to viewers as Smirnoff and Chmerkovskiy's sultry shtick. Perhaps he has a future on the small screen as well.