Bill Whelan, Composer; Maria Buffini, Lead Dancer; Enda Kenny, Prime Minister of Ireland; Brendan Dorris, Lead Dancer; Xi Jinping; Yolanda Gonzalez, Flamenco dancer & Yang Jiechi, Foreign Minister of China.

The show is still a sell-out in the world’s most populated nation, and has toured there extensively since its debut in the 1990s – a total of five times to date.

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.

An eight-week, 21 city tour of China is at the late stages of planning for the end of 2012.

Riverdance is hugely popular. Chinese audiences are often bored by Western theatre productions, shifting in their seats and sending text messages, but they love Riverdance with a passion, and one of the most remarkable sights is watching a Chinese audience stamp their feet and clap as the Riverdance troupe goes through the motions.
www.irishtimes.com

Photography: davidcantwellphotography.com

Read this on the Riverdance website: Riverdance performs for the vice president of the People’s Republic of China

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

Hi everyone and welcome to China with the brand new Bann Company. We all arrived last week very jet-lagged, some more than others. Whether we had to adjust to a 14-hour time difference or an 8-hour one, we all made it safely to Shenzhen, China. Rehearsals began right away and since this is a brand new company, there were a lot of logistics to work out including making sure the new performers were comfortable with going right into it! After two long days of blocking and rehearsing, the show went up to a sold out crowd. I will say that the audiences so far in China are a bit more reserved than what we are used to, but once they get going the show has ended with standing ovations every night.

Shenzhen buildings behind the Theater

Shenzhen is located just North of Hong Kong, it is the richest city in mainland China, and is the third largest city behind Shanghai and Beijing. I have never seen a city so vast before, the buildings go for as far as the eye can see and there is new construction popping up everywhere. We were able to get breakfast most mornings from the 23rd floor of the hotel and the view was a perfect way to start each morning. We had Thursday off, so everyone decided to use the day to explore different parts of the city. I chose to go with a few people to Dameisha Seashore Park. The beach park was about an hour from the hotel and we braved the city transport bus to get there. Since we could not read any signs or bus schedules, I am pretty proud that none of us got lost! The park was a large beach area with small shops along the shore and gorgeous views of mountains in the background. There was a small fog that gathered at the base of the distant mountains with waves crashing down. It was a great way to spend a day off! We found our way back to the hotel eventually and all headed out for a great meal.

James, Aislinn, and myself on the beach at Dameisha Seashore Park

About thirty minutes from the hotel was Windows of the World Park, which boasted of miniature wonders of the world for you to walk thru and explore. There was everything from the small scale pyramids of Egypt to the 1/3 scale model of the Eiffel Tower from Paris. It was a great way to experience the worlds’ wonders, but it felt a bit strange walking around the “world” with small scale structures of everything. We spent the better part of the day exploring and made it back to the theater in time for the closing night performance.

The miniature Arc de Triumph from Paris in the backdrop

Us at Windows of the World Park

We have all adjusted to the time difference and culture and the week finished with 6 sold out shows. We all really enjoyed Shenzhen, but were ready to experience what Guangzhou had to offer. Yesterday, we had a quick two hour drive and arrived at the hotel with plenty of time to explore. Next week, I will fill you in! Off to the theater for opening night in Guangzhou!

Kevin

Read this on the Riverdance website: Welcome to Riverdance in China!

The Liffey Company, led by Joanne Doyle and Conor Hayes, performed under a dazzling blue sky to an appreciative, if perhaps bemused audience!

Conor and Joanne lead the troupe in Riverdance.

Tourists to the wall could see the performance from far and wide – it was hard to miss!

The company were probably wishing they had sunglasses as part of their costumes.

Declan Masterson played a haunting tune on the tin whistle as part of the event.

Read this on the Riverdance website: When the East met Irish Dancing: Riverdancing on the Great Wall of China