|
|
BIOS AND SONG LIST |
||
Michael Ryan Flatley was born on July 16th 1958 in Chicago following his parents' emigration from Ireland in 1947. He spent much of his childhood going back and forth to their native Ireland. He started dancing at the tender age of 4, when his grandmother, an Irish champion dancer taught him his first steps. However, it was not until he was 11 that his mother Eilish - also an Irish Dancing Champion - took him and his brother and three sisters to dance school. He became the first American to win the World Irish Dance Championships. He has since won over 120 titles in 13 countries and almost every US State. Harassed by other kids when he was younger, he and his brother went to boxing school - he later won the Chicago Golden Gloves Amateur Boxing Championship. Michael Flatley's first ever live performance was when he toured with the Irish Folk group The Chieftains - dancing whilst they played. He first captured the world's attention with a stunning performance with Riverdance during the interval of the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, which was watched by a global TV audience of millions. He has earned a place in the Guinness Book of Records, possessing the quickest feet in the world. Lord of the Dance was conceptualised and staged within 8 weeks of his departure from Riverdance. In 1997 Flatley and his troupe caused a sensation when they performed at the Oscars. Over the past two years, Michael Flatley has performed Lord of the Dance 300 times in over 100 cities. Michael Flatley's dancing shoes are specially designed by Freed's of London. He gets through nearly 100 pairs a year. Michael's dance shoes generally last a couple of weeks but he has 6 pairs at any one time. His legs are insured for $40 million. At each show Michael Flatley saves a seat for his late grandmother, Annie, who was his greatest inspiration.
|
LDbreakout LDcelticdrm LDceltsdance LDcryofcelts LDfierynites LDgypsy LDlament LDlorddances LDnewworld LDnitemare LDsiamsa LDstolenkiss LDsuilaruin LDvictory LDwarriors LDweddinday
The Hyde Park performance on July 25th will bring together both Lord of the Dance troupes for the first time ever. The Hyde Park show will be the first totally open air performance ever staged of Lord of the Dance. Michael Flatley is a celebrated flautist - he carries his flute wherever he goes and takes it out when he wants to unwind. He has won the All-Ireland Flute Championship. Whilst on tour Michael eats steak every day for breakfast but he also loves oriental food. His favourite beer is Guinness and favourite wine is Chateau LaTour. During a performance, Michael burns up over 4,000 calories – the equivalent of over 16 Mars Bars. It is not unusual for Michael to lose over 7lbs in weight after each performance and he drinks over a gallon of liquid a day when he is touring. He is currently working on his own film project under the working title of 'Dream Dancer'. The Lord of the Dance video is the biggest selling performance video of all time in the US and has sold over 3 million copies world-wide |
|
