TORONTO - Ricky Martin is currently touring in support of last year's MTV Unplugged disc made up entirely of Spanish-language songs.

So, as you can imagine, the Latin pop star's latest stop in Toronto at the Air Canada Centre last night was wildly different, in terms of a set list, than at the height of his English-language success in 1999-2000 when he crossed over with such hits as Livin' La Vida Loca, Shake Your Bon-Bon, and She Bangs.

Thankfully, his shows haven't changed that much in tone since his English-language heyday.

The 35-year-old Puerto Rican native still knows how to put on a big production, mostly high-energy concert while shaking his well-toned you-know-what.

It helped that he was backed by an 11-piece band and eight dancers on a slick-looking stage decorated with an enormous white peace sign, two catwalks with built-in moving sidewalks and a curved semi-circular video screen onto which different effects and images were projected.

ATHLETIC BODY

Still, the real star of the evening seemed to be Martin's athletic body.

To huge screams and catcalls, he gyrated rather suggestively alongside a female dancer during the opening number, Pegate, before seguing into This Is Good and I Don't Care from his last English-language album, 2005's Life.

In fact, the hour-and-40-minute show was divided into four parts -- beginning with an upbeat African- and Eastern-inspired segment that was followed by a rather snoozy "unplugged" section that included such Spanish-language songs as Vuelve and Fuego De Noche, Nieve De Dia -- this one inspired a major singalong -- and She's All I Ever Had from his 1999 self-titled breakthrough.

Too often, Martin resorted to sleepy ballads when he's clearly way more engaging when he's moving his muscular frame, like during It's Alright, a drastically rearranged version of Livin' La Vida Loca, and the night's standout, The Cup Of Life with it's "Ole! Ole! Ole!" chorus.

The pop star first appeared on that curved video screen, shirtless and under water to huge cheers and applause, but it was a nearly naked film segment later in the show that had the crowd in full swoon.

POLITICAL MESSAGE

Still, pretty-boy looks, hot body and impressive dance moves aside (he also did cartwheels and handstands), Martin does preach for political change now, like during such songs as La Semilla de Cambio with images of impoverished children projected all around him.

The singer plays Montreal's Bell Centre tonight before heading back to the U.S. where he'll eventually play four shows in Texas next week, the home state of U.S. President George W. Bush.

You may recall that Martin gave Bush the finger as an anti-war statement during a concert in his native Puerto Rico a few months ago.