In '97, Riverdance won the Grammy Award for Best Music Show Album, creating a wave of tap dance. We can't talk about Riverdance without mentioning the king of tap, Michael Flatley. Michael Flatley.
He was 17 years old when he won the Irish World Dance Championships, and also set the record for the first non-European (Michael is an American) to win the championships, and then he won the Irish Dance Championships in 13 countries, and the National Geographic Society even called Michael "the most precious treasure on earth" (Living Treasure). The National Geographic Society even called Michael a "Living Treasure".) Michael was not only a successful tap dancer, but also a champion boxer, chess master and All-Ireland flute player. He holds the Guinness Book of World Records for tap dancing at a rate of 28 (or 35) beats per second. His versatility has been further enhanced by his choreography of popular dances since the Riverdance.
In 1996, Michael left Riverdance to present his own new Riverdance show, Lord of Dance, in Dublin. The Lord of Dance is a new choreography that is full of power and beauty, whether it is in the choreography, the crossover or the staging. The show received such an enthusiastic response from audiences that it is still being performed by three troupes on a world tour. After "Lord of the Dance", Michael presented the well-known "Feet of Flames", which is Michael's most mature work from the point of view of entertainment. In terms of entertainment, "Feet of Flames" is Maiko's most mature work, and one of the most moving of Maiko's works. Now in his forties, Myke has hung up his dancing shoes and is no longer commercially available.
Along with Riverdance and Lord of Dance is another world-class Irish dance, Spirit of Dance. "Spirit of the Dance. In Spirit of the Dance, the company's artists use their mastery and eye-popping skills to create a dazzling live visual and audio effect, focusing on Ireland's most traditional music, the most ethnic dances, costumes, and unique choreographic techniques.
The Spirit of the Dance has been performed nightly in 6-8 cities around the world, and each night's performance has always brought the audience to tears of excitement and a standing ovation, earning them a standing ovation. Full of strength and beauty of the dance movements, symbolizing the irresistible destiny of the Gaelic nation, dozens of pairs of long, strong legs, with extraordinary speed, knocking out the shocking soul, so that the audience's blood boiling rhythm, such as ten thousand horses galloping, but neat and tidy. This richly staged Irish dance drama has all the elements of a successful dance drama - anger, love, longing, jealousy, passion, seduction, sadness, music, and many young professional award-winning dancers - that will take the breath away from the audience and take your breath away from the entire spectacular show. As critic Lynda Bloom wrote in the Entertainment Newsletter: It's like a storm on stage, so full of youthful power and evocation that you can't believe your eyes while it's right in front of you!
"Lord of the Dance," "Spirit of the Dance" and "Riverdance" are all examples of Irish dance. Riverdance) are all must-see performances for fans of Irish tap, so don't miss them!
Note: Irish Tap Dance performed "Riverdance" (clip) at the 2009 Chinese New Year Gala, which was warmly received by the Chinese audience.
Five times Dancing on the River has been performed in China, and the 2012 China tour, which begins in Beijing at the end of the year, will be the curtain-raiser for the Irish company's Dancing on the River.
Since its premiere in Dublin in 1995, Riverdance has:
More than 12,000 performances worldwide. (The musical "Cats" took 21 years and 7,000 performances)
Performed in over 2,000 theaters in 32 countries and territories worldwide
More than 25 million people have seen Riverdance live
With a global television audience of 2.7 billion
Toured more than 563,000 miles, which is the equivalent of a round-trip distance from the Earth to the Moon
Honored with a Grammy Award for Best Musical, Riverdance has sold more than 10 million DVDs worldwide.
***1,200 dancers have been part of the troupe, used 12,000 pairs of shoes, worn 9,000 costumes, and drank 150,000 gallons of mineral water.
Consumed 15,500 guitar, bass and violin strings.
"Dancing on the River" dancers accumulated 17,500 years of tap dancing lessons.
The physical therapy room has used 38,400 rolls of elastic bandages.
The traveling rehearsal schedule has reached 12,000 hours.
Only one shocked the world with the music of "Dancing on the River"
The lilting and bleak Irish bagpipes continue the ancient sentiment, and the stirring fiddle stirs every sensitive heartstring, and just like that one is once again touched by the culture and history of Ireland, and one is inexorably drowned in the Irish-style sentimentality and throbbing. Here, the art renders a very longitudinal background. Instrumental music and vocals combine with unparalleled perfection, giving birth to new souls to traditional Irish musical melodies. And the flowing, heavenly vocal chants, like the cool air of a cold spring morning, cleanses away all earthly distractions and annoyances.
Only a charming "Riverdance" dance
"Riverdance" in the dance inherited the essence of Irish folk dance, with a strong national character, but also embraces all schools of tap dance, forming a unique tap dance performance of the event. Upper body upright Irish tap more a solemn and gravity, the American black tap dance that kind of casual disrespectful humor as well as the same swagger of confidence and spontaneity of the Broadway tap dance perfectly blended together. And all the tap dances in "Riverdance" are the same performance of no less complex percussion skills, neatly organized large group dance, the momentum of the rainbow, like a tidal wave generally impact on your eyes and mind. It should be said that the dancing in Dance of the River is not lacking in great skill, but it is free from the shallowness of showing off its technique altogether, and is integrated into the thick culture of Ireland. It is also another sublimation of dance being perceived and recognized in appreciation. In such simple dance and rhythm, you will suddenly be like a child returning to the basics, lost in a primitive and true initial emotion.
Only one unparalleled "Dance of the River" of the lighting "Dance of the River" in the treatment of lighting is unique. The whole show to blue light as the tone and has different levels of change, soft and elegant, giving the audience a feeling as if in the sky or the sea embrace, not only intimate and comfortable. Then supplemented with red, yellow, gray and other types of lighting, there is a sense of jumping of the breath of life. Such as the first act 7 of the play, "Fire Dance", the lights are gradually bright, the stage is in a rolling burning fire, as if countless lives in the same jumping. At that moment, a reddish-black shadow flashed out, carrying on the rhythm of life. No, it was not just a shadow, it was the spirit of fire. Slowly, the spirit of fire came out from the sea of fire, and at that moment the fire also slowly passed away, leaving only the spirit dancing in an extremely bewitching manner. And this strong visual contrast and impact also throbbed in the audience's heart.
Related dancing shoes
Professional Irish tap shoes, the bottom of the "iron" is made of fiberglass, from the cross-section, the fiberglass part of the U-shaped, about 3-4 centimeters thick, and the ordinary tap shoes are very different. Because of the fiberglass on the side of the shoe, the foot can strike the ground at various angles when the body dances, making a pleasant sound.
U fiberglass heel in the middle will have a "empty", professional actors will be placed in the U-shaped space with a microphone, so that the audience can more clearly hear different footsteps change out of the rhythm, as if the heel knocked in your ears. But this kind of shoes in the country can not yet buy, the market valuation is difficult to predict.
Beginners can choose this ordinary patent leather tap shoes, the market price is about 200 yuan yuan, the style has a lap loop, lace-up, patent leather and pigskin surface.
Dancing shoes DIY tips
Go to the dance supply store to buy a pair of iron, of course, not ordinary shoes palm, is the kind of specialized tap shoes iron, and then find a pair of wearable leather shoes, and then look for shoe repair master nailed on it. A pair of irons costs about 60 yuan.
How to choose a good dance shoes
1. fabric: the use of special technology to manufacture cowhide, soft and hard moderate, glossy and good elasticity, toughness, there are various indicators to prove that the use of fabrics are very suitable for tap dance purposes, the degree of anti-fatigue is far better than artificial leather, and more comfortable to wear.
2. Style: in the style of the international leading full package design fits the foot better, more conducive to the foot to the control of the shoe, really feel the harmony of people and dance shoes.
3. Tap piece: the main material is mostly zinc alloy, high hardness, no deformation, to ensure long-term use, plating over the tap piece should be bright as a mirror.
4. The central soft bottom design allows dancers to make novel movements, tap more freely, but also based on the pointe dance and reflect the personality of the dancer's movements, to help you become a master of masters.
5. Ordinary tap shoes tap plate is flat, tap with the ground contact surface, the sound effect is not good, if the tap plate using the middle of the raised design, so that the tap on the ground to increase the pressure, the sound effect is better, and more durable than the flat type, not easy to break.
6. Cost-effective: the expensive price of tap shoes has been unacceptable to many enthusiasts, the price of tap shoes made of synthetic leather fabrics is low, but the wearing comfort and durability is far less than that of tap shoes made of cowhide.