The producers of the Irish dance phenomenon, Riverdance, have developed a new show and are set to take it on tour across North America.
The show is called Heartbeat of Home, and while it is a predominantly traditional Irish dance production, it also has other styles such as the tango, flamenco, Cuban salsa and even hip-hop.
The diverse range of dancing is designed to reflect the growing multiculturalism of Ireland in the last 20 years. Director John McColgan says the show will modernise Irish step dancing by “opening it up to other cultures and inviting other cultures to dance with us.”
The show is about crossing the oceans from one country to another and discovering new cultures.
Producer Moya Doherty said: “We felt that together with the fusion of other cultures, we could broaden out the base and embrace and display what 20 years have done to Irish music and dance.”
Heartbeat of Home features 30 dancers and a ten piece band. The score was written by Golden Globe-nominated composer Brian Byrne and the lyrics and narrative are by novelist Joseph O’Connor.
It has debuted in Dublin this year and has been a success in China. It will be heading to North America in the New Year with shows in Toronto in January.
It will then head south to the US and will play several dates in Chicago, Detroit and Boston in March and April.
See the Heartbeat of Home trailer below
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Written by Michael Kehoe @michaelcalling