The
Dance
Last
Julian Erskine bids farewell to one
of the Emerald Isle’s finest exports
as Riverdance retires from the
UK stage
altzing into town for its final
W
UK performance, the Riverdance
Farewell Tour says goodbye to
the famous theatrical show, 14
years after its debut in Dublin. Taking to
Liverpool Empire’s stage from April 20 to 25
with its combination of Irish, Russian,
Flamenco and American Tap-inspired dance,
the 55-strong Corrib Company will perform
the phenomenal success that introduced Irish
dancing to the world, for the eighth and final
time.
Reflecting on his influence on the
emphatic show that started its life as an
interval performance at the 1994
Eurovision Song Contest, Julian
Erskine, Senior Executive Producer, recalls
its humble beginnings.
“I came on board originally as a T_heatre
Consultant when the stage show was being
developed. As the original performance had been
part of a TV production and the new show was next few years just trying to keep up.” With a worldwide TV audience in excess of two
to be a full-scale theatre event, I came in to Even during that first sell-out month in Dublin’s billion, a spell on Broadway and over 2.7 million
advise on staging and budgeting. T_hat was in the Point T_heatre over a decade ago, composer, Bill spectators during the show’s 1000 performances
summer of 1994 and I still haven’t gone home Whelan’s haunting score and the infectious in 18 UK cities, it has certainly exceeded
yet.” energy and skill of the dancers was inescapable expectations, even surviving the loss and
He adds, “No-one could have foreseen what has and a catalyst for what was to follow. competition of its most famous and original
happened. We booked [its] Dublin venue for a “It was a runaway success from the very start and performer, ‘T_he Lord of the Dance,’ Michael
four week run in February 1995 and really did most of our efforts have gone into maintaining Flatley.
not expect to be doing anything after that, but the standards and looking after the brand,” “Michael was in Riverdance for 15 weeks and we
the show took off like a rocket and we spent the Erskine recalls. are heading towards our fifteenth birthday so I
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