Chinadaily.com.cn
Mon, Feb 20, 2012

Julian Erskine, the Irish senior executive producer of the musical sensation Riverdance, knows he’s done a good job if people dance out of the theater after a performance.

That was how he felt when he came to China with Riverdance.

“We love the reaction of the Chinese people. It was such an interesting and special experience to be performing in the Great Hall of the People, the National Center for Performing Arts and many other great venues,” the producer said in an e-mail interview with China Daily.

“We had an amazing moment on the tour when we were out for a walk in Shenzhen and came across a group of Chinese people trying to do Riverdance steps in a park. That made us feel really famous.”

The team performed in Ireland for the state visit of former premier Zhu Rongji. They were subsequently invited to perform in Beijing and Shanghai in 2003.

When the sequined dancers of the musical Riverdance performed in the Great Hall of the People in Beijing in 2003, they didn’t merely usher in the biggest international production ever to hit China.

“I think it’s because Riverdance is the original Irish dance show. We were the first and every other show is a copy of us. I think that really shows on stage, and the audience can spot the difference,” said Erskine.

According to Jurek Zhang, general manager of Beijing Joyway Culture & Media Co Ltd, which manages the Riverdance tour in China, the popular musical Riverdance has been presented in China five times.

In 2009, the show was even part of China Central Television’s Spring Festival Gala, watched by an audience of millions across the country.

“The show has been staged more than 150 times, and more than 300,000 Chinese people have watched it,” said Zhang. At the end of 2012, Riverdance will have an eight-week tour in China.

Zhang noted that the arrival of the production illustrated China’s growing maturity as a cultural market, aided by the increasingly open rules of recent years that have allowed moreinter national artists and troupes to perform.

“We are glad to see that the Chinese audiences are excited to watch Riverdance. We’ve found that Riverdance has become a phenomenon among both ordinary audiences and professional dance troupes in China,” said Zhang.

“Now that the show has been to China many times, Chinese audiences feel connected to the show.”

The connection is also shared by the Riverdance team.

“Especially since we recorded our last DVD in Beijing and included three Chinese musicians in the show, we now feel very much at home in China,” said Erskine. “Wouldn’t it be great if we could one day assemble a full Chinese cast for the show? It’s not that impossible.”

A spectacular theater show of traditional Irish music and dancing, Riverdance serves up two and one-half hours of thrills, movement and rhythm.

According to the musical’s producer, who started working on Riverdance in August 1994, it all began in 1994 with the Eurovision Song Contest, a popular annual competition in which singers from different European nations perform.

Television viewers pick the winner. The full show opened in February 1995 and has been seen by more than 22 million people since.

“We knew it was a big hit in Ireland at the start, but I suppose the first time we really knew it was special was when we went to London and the audiences and critics alike raved about the show,” said Erskine.

He noted that step dancing, performed in the Riverdance show, has been part of Irish village celebrations, such as weddings and festivals, for centuries. It enjoyed a revival in the 1930s,when enthusiasts laid down some rules about how the dance should be done. Dancers wear hard shoes to beat out the rhythm on the ground. The upper body and arms don’t move. All the movement of the dance comes from the legs and feet.

Riverdance was the first show to line up 30 or more dancers in a row and have them step dancing in perfect rhythm.

“It was not generally popular until the success of Riverdance, but after that, everyone wanted to learn!” he said.

Read this on the Riverdance website: Riverdancers in step with audiences across entire nation

July and August 2008

With a great week off under our belt, it was time to get back to business and finish our last two weeks of tour.  Beijing has a great number of activities and sites to take in.  I am pretty sure I had my camera glued to my hand the entire stay here.  The 2008 Summer Olympic Games are being held in Beijing this year, and it’s a shame that we are not around for the opening ceremonies, but it’s an honor that Riverdance is being considered as a precursor to the Olympics.  Ireland is proud to be part of such a prestigious event and what better than to have Riverdance help bring Ireland to the Olympics.

We did manage to have an additional two days off before opening night due to customs problems with the set being shipped from Japan.  This does not surprise me as the security in the lot of Beijing was very high in preparation for the Olympics.  During these extra days off, I was able to partake in one of the coolest things I have ever done.  A group of 11 cast members ventured on a 2-day, 8km hike of an unrestored section of the Great Wall of China.  We began at a family’s house that was located in a small village just below the wall about 2 hours outside of greater Beijing.  The family, who spoke no English, showed us how to make dumplings.  We rolled the dough, put in the ingredients and folded up the dumplings to be put in the fire cooker.  Our tour guide/translator told us this is what would typically be eaten on a normal basis for this family.  After our homemade feast, we ventured two hours up a mountain to the wall for the first bit of our hike.  The hills were steep and many lose rocks and boulders made it a difficult climb, but it was all worth it for the unbelievable view we received at the top.  This section of the Great Wall is closed to tourists, so it was a treat to be able to see such a huge part of history up close without so many people in the way.  After making our way to the campsite and setting up, we all sat on top of a crumbling tower to watch the sunset.  This is one of the most beautiful things I have ever witnessed, something never to be forgotten.

Here is one of the sunset views on the Great Wall

We woke to watch the sunrise and continued our hike along the wall.  A section we came to contained no sides and shrubbery in the middle, so “walking the plank” along the edge was the way to go.  Also, there was a long drop to the left and many loose rocks, it was scary to say the least and we had to be very careful.  After our treacherous descent down the final unrestored section, we made it to the touristy area.  No doubt they were wondering why we were drenched in sweat and carrying camping essentials; as if having red hair in China didn’t get me enough stares, ha!  I am extremely glad that we all enjoyed ourselves so much, this was a great experience and I would definitely do it again if I had the opportunity.

Cast members enjoy a break while hiking the Great Wall

It was great to be back to the hotel and meet up with the rest of the cast.  The evening was spent finding out how the rest of the cast enjoyed their week off.  For those who stayed in Beijing during this time, they were able to see many parts of the city.  The Beijing Zoo has one of the largest Pandas in Asia, so that was a great site to see.  The zoo boasts of many rare and exotic animals of China.  Other than the Giant Panda, the White-nosed deer, Sichuan golden snub-nosed monkeys, and Manchurian tigers were just among the many species the zoo offers.  Also, there are beautiful gardens with aged trees and traditional Chinese flowers.  The Forbidden City was another great piece of history.  The Forbidden City is the Chinese imperial palace from the mid-Ming Dynasty to the end of the Sing Dynasty and it is located just next to Tiananmen Square, which is one of the biggest squares in the World.  The square itself is massive and leads up to the grand door entrance of the city.  The city contains shrines, imperial quarters, old traditional Chinese decor, and beautiful gardens.  I visited the city for over 2 hours and didn’t get to see everything; I don’t think you are able to see everything!

Here is a picture of one of the many palaces within the Forbidden City

Another great area to see was the Summer Palace.  The Palace, located on Longevity Hill is listed on the UNESCO World Heritage List, and is a “masterpiece of Chinese landscape and garden design.”  The grounds cover 2.9km, most of which is water.  The hills, waters, palaces, and temples made for a peaceful stroll before the hectic pace of opening day in Beijing.  Sometimes, it is fun to play tourist while on tour and take in the natural and man-made beauties of each different city.

Opening night went very well.  We sold out for the entire week in Beijing and there was great energy among the cast.  In attendance to the show were the Irish Ambassador of China and the Irish Olympic Boxing team.  They took time out from their vigorous schedules and were able to see the show and meet the cast afterwards.  Also, our Executive Producer, Julian Erskine, was in town.  There was an opening night party with food and drink and all were invited.  Demand for tickets was high, so an extra matinee was added, which sold out in about and hour and a half.  It was a great way to open the show in China.

Crew member Dave Murphy is pictured with the Irish Olympic Boxing Team

Our time in Beijing was very fast paced, so it came as no surprise that our last week of tour in Xi’an was spent relaxing.  There were still some great sites to see in Xi’an, and one of the more popular with the cast was the Terracotta Soldiers.  There is an area of Xi’an that was discovered in 1974 by farmers that contains thousands of figures.  The terracotta figures date back to 210 BC and are the warriors and horses of Shi Huang Di, the first Emperor of China.  They are the symbols of funerary art for those killed during the Emperors reign.  It was an unbelievable site to see all of these restored statues honoring what they fought for.  The statues are encased in several buildings that were built surrounding the original resting place for the statues.  By not having to initially move the statues this made for easier restoration.

Every night, right in front of our hotel, there was a family that carried, literally, an entire restaurant on the back of bicycles.  We called the restaurant, “street meat,” because of its mobility and mysteriousness of its meat.  Towards the end of the week, most of the cast liked to gather at this makeshift restaurant and relax after the show.  I am not entirely sure that the meat was chicken or pork, but I’d like to take their word for it.  I will tell you though that my stomach is still mad at me!  There was also an area of Xi’an called South Street.  There were many bars and restaurants that lined the street.  They had retractable walls with seating outside and lights in all of the trees and it made the nightlife more interesting.

Here is a group of us enjoying our “Street Meat”

It is always hard to say good bye at the end of a tour, especially one that has been so amazing.  This group of people is one of the best I have ever worked with.  It was especially hard for three individual cast members.  Siobahan Manson, Jason Oremus, and Damian O’Neil are hanging up their dancing shoes and moving on to other things.  It has been a pleasure to work with them and I hope them the best in their future endeavors.  The rest of the week was spent in preparation for going home.  Boxes were sent home to avoid overweight luggage fees, last minute souvenirs were purchased, and then it was time to say our goodbyes.  I have really enjoyed writing these diaries and spending so much time emerged in such a different culture than what I am used to.  I am returning home with many memories and great friendships.

Take care and I hope to talk to you all again soon…next stop for this company will be Taiwan in December!

Read this on the Riverdance website: Beijing and Xi’an before the 2008 Olympic Games