The journey for River Dance began in Dublin Ireland in 1994, as just a seven minute intermission show. It was an entirely new form of the very familiar Irish 'step' dance. The style of the dance as well as the attitude were changed from the original classic step dance. The addition of a live band and singers made the feel of the dance become that much more alive. In the intermission show in 1994, the crowd became mesmerized when Michael Flatley and Jean Bulter arrived on stage to introduce River Dance. During the next year, the dance was modified to become its own show. The first two known dancers, Michael Flatley and Jean Bulter, were the original leaders in River Dance. Michael Flatly was the male lead and went on to create "Lord of the Dance" Since the opening year's show in 1995 at Dublin's Point theatre, over a million people have seen a River Dance performance.
The Eurovision of 1994 Dublin, Ireland.
You can watch it here:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qriw7kGPZrY
River Dance incorporated not just the Irish heritage in its dance form but also incorporated pieces of Spanish, Russian and African- America dance. With the combination of all the history into one dance program and the transformation in the style of music, River Dance's popularity boomed.
One source of information for River Dance states, " At a basic level, River Dance is a display of music, dancing and singing. On a deeper level, it is the story of Ireland and its people. Like a river fed by many tributaries, then flowing into the oceans, the Irish people came from many different places, and then centuries later, moved out of Ireland to other parts of the world."
-Shannon B
"Show Guide for Riverdance." — Popejoy Presents. Web. 1 Apr. 2015. <http://popejoypresents.com/performance-guides/show-guide-for-riverdance>.
"Riverdance Celebrates 20 Years since Eurovision 1994 - Riverdance." Riverdance. 28 Apr. 2014. Web. 1 Apr. 2015. <http://riverdance.com/blog/2014/04/28/20-years-since-eurovision-1994/>.
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