RIVERDANCE CONTINUES TO THRILL
Two decades on, Irish spectacle now a truly global experience
Maggie Darlington is from exactly where you would expect an awardwinning competitive Irish dancer to be from.
“I’m from California,” said Darlington. “I started dancing when I was three to follow in the footsteps of my older sister who wanted to do some kind of dancing. My dad’s entire extended family is Irish and, I expect my sister liked the clothes, so Irish dancing it was.”
To say Darlington excelled at Claddagh School of Irish Dance in sunny Southern California is an understatement. Four North American Championships, two All-Ireland Championships, and a 2007 World Irish Dancing Championship win put her high kicking above the rest.
Darlington went on to originate the lead female role in Battle of the Dance, too. This dinner theatre experience in Anaheim presented both Irish and flamenco dancers and was designed to cash in on the popularity of TV shows such as Dancing with the Stars and So You Think You Can Dance.
It didn’t. Darlington joined the cast of Riverdance in 2011.
“I auditioned when I was about 19 when the show was on one of their many farewell tours and was put on a waiting list,” she said. “I moved on and sort of forgot about it. Then the option came up to go on tour, and here I am seven years later.”
Darlington is in the spotlight for a good deal of the entire performance in Maya Doherty and John McColgan’s theatrical spectacular, which has entertained a global audience numbering in the double-digit millions
at in excess of 500 venuesand-counting all over the globe.
As to why a show that is 23 years old is on its 20th anniversary tour, let’s just say the math works pretty closely to the date of the first global road trip by the company.
Dancer connections to the Emerald Isle have become more tenuous as generations of performers have passed through the ranks. Those on stage are some of the world’s finest at their craft, but they may have learned all the rapid-fire footwork in foreign lands.
Darlington laughs when asked about how the Irish felt about someone who should have been surfing winning all the big prizes and then going on to star in Riverdance.
“Oh, there’s about as many English and Americans in those competitions as there are Irish these days, and its become more of a friendly thing rather than one about na- tional pride,” she said.
“Whoever wins, the physical requirements and skills need to be judged better than the rest and anyone at that level has been dancing every day to get there.”
Irish dance is relentlessly physical, requiring a level of cardio endurance that makes those who practice it athletes as much as artists.
“The closest thing you can relate it to is probably sprinting in terms of the cardio-wise bursts of energy,” Darlington said.
“But you also need the body awareness of a ballerina or other type of dancer to get the complex foot articulation right. From age three I was at the studio dancing a few hours four or five days a week to get to a certain level, and was up to every day when I got serious.”
That kind of training and the rigorous performance schedule equals a lot of opportunities for injuries. Darlington says the troupe takes every precaution to mitigate this risk.
“You get used to being careful and very aware of how you are doing out there,” Darlington said. “And, yes, we do travel with an accompanying physiotherapist and there is also a masseuse, who are two of the busiest and most appreciated members of the tour, for sure.”
A global audience has embraced the Riverdance experience, and the show now has the sought-after legacy crowd of multiple generations. From the earliest reviews, there was never any questioning that the concept worked.
A usual tour show consists of 20-plus song and dance numbers ranging from Irish to other international styles. Flamenco, Russian and even a Nova Scotia set have all turned up in different tours.
“Under it all is just how incredibly infectious the Irish music is throughout, and they do have beautiful costumes,” Darlington.
The fact that they haven’t tried to change it and just let us get up and do what we do has kept the brand vital.”
Experience doesn’t hurt either. A tour typically lasts six months at eight shows a week. Darlington admits that it’s a routine that takes some getting used to.
So is a day off typically spent eating chips and streaming Netflix in the hotel?
“Oh yeah sure, but you have to break out of that and get out there and do things,” Darlington said.
“We try to make an effort and have some fun on days off, even if you are typically exhausted. I love doing things that are physical even when I’m not onstage or rehearsing.”
Given a dancer’s lifespan onstage is short, considering options is always a good idea. For a fitnessoriented type like Darlington, getting a yoga instructor certification seemed like a no-brainer. She doesn’t know what the future holds, but that was one activity that suited her taste for movement and comfy clothing.
“I’m always thinking about what’s next,” she said. “But I’m also going to Europe, China, Japan and all over the world, too. And everywhere we go, they really love the show and it seems universal.”