Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance: a tour de force of Irish dancing

Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance, Liverpool Empire

MICHAEL FLATLEY’S LORD OF THE DANCE
LIVERPOOL EMPIRE
Sept 30 – Oct 4


Liverpool rose to its feet for Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance at the city's Empire theatre when they witnessed a dramatic presentation of love, danger and desire.

Two encores and a standing ovation met the energetic performers after a two-hour tour de force of Irish dancing. A minimal set comprised a prominent Celtic motif centre stage surrounded by steel scaffolding which, with clever lighting, set the backdrop for the often dramatic scenes.

The story follows the Lord of the Dance majestically interpreted by Damian O'Kane and his fight against the evil dark lord Don Dorcha (Thomas Cunningham) who competed with the honours for most exciting exponent of the breathtaking artistry of Irish dance.

The Lord of the Dance defeats the dark lord's invasion of Planet Ireland with help from a little spirit (Kate Pomfritt). The spirit, in gold sparkling jumpsuit is ever present to sprinkle fairy dust to awaken the dancers to perform this mythical tale or to play the theme tune of Lord of the Dance on her pipe.

There is also a love versus lust theme expressed through poignant dance by Saoirse, the Irish Cailín (Bernadette Flynn) who fights for the love of her real life husband O'Kane against the wicked Morrighan the Temptress sensually danced by Aisling Murphy. The stories are based on ancient Irish folklore and some biblical references. Flynn has won many awards for her dancing and has, in the past, partnered Flately, the creator of the production.

But sexy dancing is not confined to Morrighan but also displayed by the girls, who in one scene fling off their short dresses and dance in black bras and shorts. To balance the sexiness of the women we also experience aggressive dancing from the two male ‘tribes’ who 'fight' through faster, louder and more complex step dancing in good vs evil scenarios.

To lighten the frenetic scenes there are calmer interludes with Irish fiddlers Glada Costenaro and Aine McGreevy playing traditional tunes, along with Erin the Goddess (Hayley Griffiths) whose voice is Waterford crystal clear when she sings the haunting Marble Halls, a Celtic melody and an Irish slant on The Water is Wide.

There are only so many steps in Irish dance and it can seem rather repetitative, but clever choreography, many changes of attractive costumes, dramatic lighting and pyrotechnics shape the momentum of the show.

What amazes is the precision of the footwork, the relentless demands on the dancers, and the mythical themes conveyed through music, dance and a heroic story.

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