People sitting down to watch this are after one thing. Dancing. And Irish dancing at that. While there was plenty of dancing, the Irishness kind of took a back seat. In fact I don't remember one instance where dancers were in traditional dress. On the contrary, they managed to cram some decidedly non-traditional costumes into what was supposed to be a traditional Irish fable. I suppose the idea was that this should be a bit of a departure from the original Riverdance. As such it would suit those who have seen the rest of the Lord of the Dance franchise and wanted something different. But for a casual fan, like me, it was a let down.
As a dance show, it really didn't need a story. In fact, on the whole, it was detrimental to my enjoyment. Far too much time was taken up by, what I can only describe as posturing. Yes I know It's Mr Flatley's thing and they had to give the main troupe time to catch their breath. However they could have filled in more with the violinists/fiddlers and solo dancers.
The thing that was most jarring to me though, was the singing. Irish singer - yes, but singing in a glaring American accent, so what was the point. If they had made the whole show as full-on dancy as the encore, I would have been very happy. As it was I just had to wait for the bits I liked.
