Lord of the Dance

The Roots of Irish Dance

While there are many forms of Irish dance culturally, one in particular has captured the attention of audiences – the Munster form from southern Ireland. Governed by the Irish Dancing Commission, this form is now taught in many studios around the world as a fun and energetic pastime.

Taking it further, in 1995 composer Bill Whelan began working with several Irish dancers to create a stage performance called Riverdance, which showcased several Irish and Celtic art forms (including Flamenco) all together. The show was a success, and even though there were creative disagreements with one of the principal performers, it was a fertile womb for the next wave of Irish cultural performance.

A Lord of the Dance is Born

It is impossible to talk about Lord of the Dance without talking about Michael Flatley. This Irish dancer came to prominence as the lead dancer and choreographer for Riverdance, though he left the show before it began touring widely. He was, however, the lead in the first video recording of the show, and that put his face and his feet in front of viewers all over the world.

Deciding that he wanted to create a show that would be playable not only in traditional theatres but also in arena-size venues, Flatley began working on The Lord of the Dance. Drawing from traditional Irish folk tales, the Bible, and classic western stories such as West Side Story, he created a tale of the "Little Spirit" who had to help an Irish Lord defeat the evil Don Dorcha and frustrate his plans to take over Planet Ireland.

The story is told entirely without words, through the poses and movements and steps of the dance. Unlike the traditional sean nos that the stepdance is based on, Flatley's production was immensely competitive and confrontational, with numbers such as "Warlords" which is a pitched battle between the forces of good, aligned with the Lord of the Dance, and the inimical hordes of Don Dorcha.

The confrontations were not limited to the soldiers; another climactic moment in the production is the battle between the pure Irish Cailin "Saoirse" and the temptress "Morrigan." This dueling duet, performed with the soft-shoe style of Irish stepdance with some burlesque moves thrown in, represented the struggle between love and lust.

Like any purely allegorical performance, the gestures and emotions portrayed are large and sometimes even grotesque, and this has been some of the criticism of the production. However, while the number does resemble a rock and roll concert in its use of lighting and loud music, Flatley retains a healthy respect for the art it is based on. The grand finale of the show, "Planet Ireland," is a group dance piece that is performed entirely a capella, letting the talented feet of the dancers produce their own accompaniment. The rest of the show is a mélange of Celtic-inspired music by composer Roman Hardiman.

Dancing Across the World

Premiering in 1996, Lord of the Dance was a success from day one, and was invited to perform at the Oscars in 1997 and then showing at Disney's Epcot Center in 1999 and 2000. During this time Flatley also created several touring companies to go to Europe, Asia, South America, and Canada.

In 1998, after two successful years of touring with the show, Flatley gathered all of the dancers from the companies for one show in Hyde Park, London. This production, entitled "Feet of Flame" had around 100 dancers all on stage at the same time, with a culminating "final performance" solo by Michael Flatley. However, since the production was so well received, he decided to dedicate one troupe to tour the "Feet of Flame" show and accompanied them as the lead performer. Another Lord of the Dance troupe stayed for a time in Euro-Disney, but others continued to travel around the world.

The production continues to thrill audiences with infectious excitement and a universally understandable story of conflict and resolution. Most of all, though, it contains riveting dancers taking their traditional art into a brand new age.