AFTER the well publicised warring between Michael Flatley and the producers of Riverdance - The Show, it was inevitable that a brainy boxer would not be counted out so quickly and he has returned fighting, backed by appropriate tactics.
Lord of the Dance is his response, a new show choreographed by himself with music by Ronan Hardiman. The main focus, of course, will be the dancing of Flatley and in spite of the tireless and tiresome publicity of the man's many talents, few can deny that he is a one in a generation dancer.
Publicity material is coy about what else to expect in Lord of the Dance. Flatley himself sees it a "a good versus evil story, a story that has been told in a million different ways in every movie and play. The difficult thing is to tell it differently and paint your own pictures as you go along."
By choosing to use a good yarn, rather than the cabaret style of Riverdance - The Show, Flatley is aligning himself further to the Andrew Lloyd Webber style mega productions. Spectacle and a taut storyline are the most important elements in their success and responsibility for the "look" of Lord of the Dance lies with designer Jonathan Park.
Posters seem to suggest that a Celtic theme will frame the 40 dancers, a slant that got watered down between the original Riverdance and Riverdance - The Show. With his virile pose and body paint suggesting a mythological hero, Flatley is cashing in on the current Celtic craze and his decision to emphasise this could be the most significant factor in this show's success.
But will spectacular design and dramatic plot be enough? Flatley is right in admitting the difficulty in using dance alone to tell his story. Audiences tend not to be terribly literate in dance and seem to prefer the conventions of musicals and plays. Consequently the vignettes of international dance that made up Riverdance - The Show were apposite. To succeed in creating a 90 minute dance drama, he will have to extend his dance vocabulary and fully avail of the talents of director Arlene Phillips.
Riverdance was said to have liberated Irish dancing by ridding it of the stiff upper body and it will be interesting to see if Flatley can push this even further. All that is certain is the beginning of debates on Riverdance versus Lord of the Dance. Seconds away, round two.
The gala opening night of Lord of the Dance takes place on Tuesday and it will run until Saturday, July 6th at the Point Theatre, Dublin.