It's called the dance of love, but taking up the tango could also be the key to easing many health problems.
In a study published in the journal Music and Medicine, academics from the University of New England, in New South Wales, found that dancing the tango has significant health benefits for people experiencing mood disorders.
The authors said the tango requires 'a strong connection' with a partner and this connection 'helped the participants to focus on the present moment and mentally switch off from their feelings of stress and distress'.
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It was this element of tango that attracted Moroccan-Belgian choreographer Sidi Larbi Cherkaoui.
Social tango dances, or milonga's are the inspiration for his latest dance work Milonga, which opens at the Sydney Opera House tomorrow.
"I think my work is about relationships, about how people handle each other," he said.
"In tango I saw some sort of magic happening, some sort of communication going on that was completely without any sign of visual contact or words."
"Somehow through touch they could tell each other a lot of things and we could follow that conversation from outside."
It is far from the one-dimensional view of tango experienced by tourists wishing to soak up the culture of Buenos Aires between visits to steak houses and wineries.
"You can't put dance in a museum," Cherkaoui said. It's a dynamic culture that is constantly changing."
