Lord of the Dance celebrated its 25th anniversary last month with a run of six sold out shows at the Bord Gais Energy Theatre in Dublin, Ireland.
Opening night was a particularly special affair, though, as the original 1996 cast attended to watch the current crop of talent shine on stage, along with a performance from younger dancers who may one day be stars of the show.
As a special surprise for the audience, 22 “future stars of the stage” were invited to open the show, all aged between seven and 11-years-old. Many of the young dancers were students of former cast members, who have since gone on to become Irish dance teachers around the world.
One young dance hopeful even got to step into Mr Flatley’s shoes for the night. 11-year-old world champion Oscar Donnelly, from Motherwell, Scotland, told The Irish Dance Globe about the “amazing opportunity” to perform the “mini lead” in the iconic title number from the show.
Oscar, who dances for the Sharon Taylor Academy, found out about the surprise opportunity after his teacher was contacted by creative director James Keegan, who passed on the personal invitation from Flatley.
Oscar said that the chance to take centre stage and perform the lead role brought him one step closer to his dance ambitions.
“It’s my dream to one day dance lead in the Lord of the Dance show, so to be given a taste of that truly is the best experience and has made me more determined to work hard and push towards this goal in future,” he said.
For Oscar, performing with so many people in attendance was an amazing feeling. Remarkably, he also told us that he didn’t find it a nerve-wracking experience at all, but rather exciting.
“I love dancing and performing for crowds and people. It’s not something that’s daunting to me, I get a buzz from it,” he explained.
Oscar’s dreams of performing professionally one day might be coming true, and he’s certainly on the right track. The Irish Dance Globe asked about his future goals, to which he replied: “It’s my dream to one day be in that show full-time. Michael Flatley is my hero and the reason I started Irish dancing. If I was offered that opportunity I would take it in a heartbeat.”
Flatley said in a press statement that it was his “honour on this special occasion to be able to give young dancers the opportunity to perform onstage in front of thousands of people and give them a taste of what is achievable when you work hard”.
“Encouraging dancers to never give up on their dreams and to believe in themselves is something we must do for the next generation,” he added.
Opening night was monumental not only for Oscar, but for many other dancers who accompanied him on stage to form the young troupe line.
Reunited by the Lord of the Dance himself, former lead dancers Daire Nolan, Helen Egan, Bernadette Flynn, and Gillian Norris were also in attendance.
“I’m proud to be back in Dublin for the 25 year anniversary of Lord of the Dance,” Flatley said ahead of the shows. “I have the greatest team of dancers, they are excited to be part of Lord of the Dance, and every single one of them is trained to the highest standard of dance, athleticism and precision.”
The Lord of the Dance cast now heads off for another celebratory run of shows in Dubai followed by a European leg, with the 2023 tour set to bring a “fresh new look” to the classic show.
Here’s to another 25 years of standing ovations for this iconic show.
