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Irish Dance Phenomenon Comes to Seoul

Published: 04 Jan. 2003, 19:02

The show that has drawn an audience of over 10 million people across the world over the past three years.

Sold-out performances in London, New York, Atlanta, Hong Kong, and Singapore.

These are the kind of headlines that follow the Irish dance troupe 'Spirit of the Dance' when they go on tour.

This dance troupe, who never fail to overwhelm their audiences, will be performing in Korea at the Seoul Art Center's Opera Hall, from May 30 through June 4 (performances at 7:30 p.m, additional performances at 3 p.m. on weekends and holidays).

Irish dance began to draw the attention of the world in the 1990s with large-scale productions such as 'Riverdance,' 'Lord of the Dance,' and in 1997, 'Spirit of the Dance.'

The origin of tap dance can be traced back to an old Western street game called 'challenges' and 'stealing steps,' which consisted of copying another person's footsteps. The special feature of this dance team is that though 'Spirit of the Dance' focuses on traditional dancing, they have also added flamenco, classical ballet, red hot salsa and jazz dance. With a singer and violin player added to the mix, it could be called a 'variety show'.

In addition, the tap dance in this show does not consist of a dancer simply 'tapping' in place, but more than 20 dancers performing a dynamic group dance.

Created, produced, and composed by David King, an ex-playwrght, the 'Spirit of the Dance' has regular performances in Branson and Reno in the United States, and there are three different troupes currently on world tour.

In this Korean performance, 27 dancers, one singer, and one violinist will take the stage. For those who want a taste of their exciting performance in advance, you can visit their homepage at spiritofthedance.co.kr (Korean) or www.spiritofthedance.com (English). For more information call 02-1588-7890.

by Kim Hyun-jung