From Pennsylvania we made a short trip to the neighboring state of Ohio and the city of Columbus. Our hotel and the theatre were in a prime location just a block away from the Ohio River and several blocks from a beautiful downtown area of shops and a cinema. There was also the added bonus of a history museum just across the river which had an exhibit on the Titanic. The display included artifacts which were recovered form the sunken ships, letters to family members from passengers, pictures and video presentations.

The theatre we were playing in was very old and beautiful inside. It is rumored to be one of the ten most haunted theatres in the country. Facts like this always excite the cast. Apparently last time Riverdance was at this theatre in Columbus (with the Lagan company) one of the dancers saw a ghost in the theatre. Although we were on the lookout all week no one saw any signs of anything paranormal this time.

The Thursday night after the show was great because our resident band, Justice 47, which is made up of cast members, played a gig at a local Irish bar. The band performed all original material to an enthusiastic crowd of Riverdancers mixed with lots of locals. The fast paced, energetic songs kept everyone on their feet and screaming for more.

David Bellwood on fiddle, Ian McTigue on drum and Justin Ryan playing guitar

Justice 47 on stage

Justice 47: Justin Ryan, Jenny O'Connell, David Bellwood, Paddy Quinn, Ian McTigue

We had several flying squad members in for the week. They were former members of the Lagan, Liffey, Avoca, and Shannon companies. Some came to join us for the remainder of the tour while others are from the Columbus area and danced with us because we were in their home town.
Either ways it's always fun to see familiar faces and we all had a great time catching up.

We encountered very strange weather in Columbus. The day we arrived was warm and very spring like but a couple days into our stay it got very cold. We even had a downpour of snow on the weekend. It was very strange walking into a matinee in April in the snow!

Our next stop after Columbus was Indianapolis, Indiana. This city is best known for car racing, and most notably the Indianapolis 500 - a prestigious formula one race held yearly. The track the race is held on is open to tour during the rest of the year. Several Riverdancers went to see it and even got a change to ride around the track as a passenger in one of the race cars. Inside the building was a huge display of all the cars that have won the Indy 500 as well as several of the trophies.

Feeling comfortable at the Indy 500 track

Getting ready for a drive around the track

It was in Indianapolis that we had to say goodbye to Alexis MacIsaac, a fiddle player who came out briefly to work with the company. This was her first time being on the road with Riverdance and we hope to see her back very soon. On her last night after the show we all gathered in the lobby of the hotel and had a makeshift session until the early hours of the morning. It started as a small get together to wish Alexis well but quickly progressed as the musicians and dancers started bringing down the instruments from their rooms. We had several fiddles, whistles and a piano (which was in the lobby). The singers were there too and treated us to several songs. It was an evening to remember and a wonderful way to see Alexis off and end our stay in Indianapolis.