The Lord of the Dance Triumphs
as He Blazes Across a Vancouver Stage
By COLLEEN CARPENTER
VANCOUVER - As I was walking down Homer Street on my way to The Centre for Performing Arts to see Lord of the Dance on December 13, I knew I was heading in the right direction as ahead of me two little girls were stomping their feet and dancing their way towards the theatre. Obviously, these girls knew what to expect.
Inside the theatre, people were heading to their places. Looking around I could see that there were very few vacant seats - and this was the matinee! All ages had come to see the Lord of the Dance including many children.
We all settled in and the show started with several robed figures carrying torches. We were introduced to the sparkly clad Little Spirit playing the tune Lord of the Dance on her tin whistle. The Spirit awakens the dancers with magical dust and soon the Lord of the Dance arrives. Then we are off and dancing.
The cast includes The Lord of the Dance, the Dark Lord, the Temptress, the Little Spirit, the Goddess and of course an Irish Colleen.
The Little Spirit helps the Lord of the Dance protect his people against the Dark Lord who is trying to come to power. The Lord of the Dance deals with the Dark Lord and his followers, and is hard put to resist the Temptress. However, the Lord of the Dance overcomes all.
The Lord of the Dance showed his dancing prowess in several solos - watching him you could see the amazing steps that Michael Flatley made famous when he was the Lord of the Dance.
The troupe of dancers were excellent. The Dark Lord's attempts to egg on the audience to support him brought humour to the production. The Lord of the Dance was lucky to escape the Temptress who gave a very inviting performance.
We were also entertained by two lovely violinists who had the crowd clapping. The Goddess entertained us with songs sung in English and Gaelic. She had a beautiful voice.
When the whole troupe danced their signature dance the audience loved it. They were called back for an encore. The enthusiasm with which they danced their encore was amazing considering how much energy they had already put into their whole performance.
As the audience left the theatre, there was a feeling that indeed the Lord of the Dance had triumphed.
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