Dancing Man: The Wondrous Journey of Michael Flatley

For anyone who doesn’t know the story of dancer extraordinaire Michael Flatley, hearing it might sound like the plot from a fanciful old Hollywood musical. Flatley turned his dreams into reality, even when no one gave him half the chance of ever becoming half of what he has become today.

One day, the life story of Michael Flatley will be turned into a big screen musical. However, giving the star role to an Irish dancer as prolific as Flatley may prove challenging. From Riverdance to Lord of the Dance, Flatley and his troupe of performers have wowed audiences the world over with breathtaking displays of traditional and modern dance. Known as an artist with the quickest feet in the world, Flatley has grossed the most money as a dancer. He is estimated to be worth over €400 million. Not bad for a guy who started his working life as a construction worker on the tough south side of Chicago.

Flatley was born to Irish immigrant parents on July 16, 1958, in Chicago, Illinois. He has three sisters and one brother. His family was successful in the construction business, which gave all the Flatley children a sense of acceptance when it came to hard physical work from a very early age. The Flatley family would often visit Ireland, and it was there that Flatley became completely enamored by the passion and power of traditional Irish dance. “Both my mother and her mother (Hannah Ryan), were champion Irish dancers,” says Flatley. “So when you grow up around talent of that size, you cannot help but be deeply inspired by it.”

It was grandmother Ryan that Flatley credits with not only sparking his big dreams, but with teaching him his first rudimentary dance steps at age four. From there, she would provide a constant flow of support, encouragement and devotion to her grandson until her untimely death shortly thereafter. When performing, Flatley would always keep one seat empty in the front row of every performance, as a silent yet powerful tribute to his grandmother, whom he believes is watching him proudly.

After the fire was lit in Flatley, he took formal Irish dance lessons even when he was originally told he was too old. But by the age of 17, Flatley boldly asserted his talent, drive and determination by becoming the first American ever to win the All-World Irish Dancing Championship in 1975. He used his budding fame to open an Irish dance school, and soon was teaching 300 students. Flatley was still working in construction at the time, yet performing was where his heart was set on. “I would perform anywhere and everywhere I could,” says Flatley. “I always believed that one day I would perform in front of that one person that would be able to help me to the next level.” That day came when someone from the famous Irish folk group The Chieftains beckoned. The group wanted Flatley to tour with them. Throughout the 1980s, Flatley did just that. “Every time I would try a new move or routine, I would use the audience’s response to decide on where to go next – it was a great experience.”

Riverdance, Flatley’s big breakout, began in 1993. He was invited to perform in Ireland at a festival that was to be attended by the president of Ireland, and many other Irish notables. Flatley electrified the audience to such an extent, that the producers of the show immediately commissioned him to do a short presentation for television. When the presentation was broadcast, it made Flatley a star overnight. He was immediately prompted to expand his short piece into a full-length stage presentation. The phenomenal Riverdance was born on April 30, 1994, at Dublin’s Points Theatre, and was met with immediate critical and box office acclaim. The show moved to a hugely successful run in London, England, before things started to fray around the edges.

After almost two years of dizzying success, Flatley suddenly left Riverdance. “It had become so huge, so fast, that I felt that all of a sudden it was not mine, not what I wanted, and I had worked too hard and too long on this dream to have it tarnished.” Flatley was by this time quite wealthy and could have simply sat back and enjoyed what he had already achieved – but that is not how Flatley is built. Just 11 days after leaving Riverdance, Flatley was ready to unveil a new show, Lord of the Dance, at Points Theatre in Dublin. This time, Flatley has risked his own personal resources staging the show. “I believed in myself, I have always believed in myself, and if the show did not do well, I was ready to pick myself up and create another. Nothing was going to ever keep me down.” Lord of the Dance was an instant success, and because of the renown he had achieved with Riverdance, there was an enthusiastic anticipation for his new show all over the world. The New York version of the performance sold out 13 consecutive nights the first day tickets went on sale. When Flatley and his troupe performed at the Academy Awards ceremony in front of a TV audience of 2.5 billion, the popularity of the show exploded all over the world.

A serious injury – a torn calf muscle ­– would almost sideline Flatley for good, but even that would not deter him. “I believe that you can take whatever your mind can trick you into believing you can take,” says Flatley. So even though he was advised to recuperate for six weeks, he would be on stage four days later performing. In mid-1998, Flatley would stepped away as a performer from Lord of the Dance to create something he thought would take his art to the next level – the result was the unbelievable spectacle called Feet of Flames.

The success of the shows created and controlled by Flatley, and the energy he put into them, was astounding. At 39, he was still setting records for the fastest tap dancing steps, to the size of the insurance policy placed on his legs (about $40 million). To date, Lord of the Dance alone (not counting Feet of Flames or his subsequent Celtic Tiger) has passed the half a billion-dollar mark in worldwide ticket sales.

Flatley retired from active performing after a show in Ireland on June 28, 1998, having achieved everything he had dreamed of and more. “I believed that one day I would be the greatest Irish dancer ever,” says Flatley, who has homes in Chicago, France, Ireland, London and Barbados. “But what happened that was even more rewarding was that I have brought Irish dance to the world and given the opportunity to others to make a living being Irish dancers – my dreams have helped make their dreams come true – that is richly rewarding.” The doting husband and father is expected to open a multi-million dollar hotel and casino in Las Vegas soon.

Most recently, Flatley appeared on Dancing With The Stars as a guest judge, where the response from the audience showed that Flatley continues to be fondly known as one of the greatest dancers ever. The lesson in all of this is that every great thing that is achieved comes into the world first as a vision, and Flatley will tell you that being the biggest dreamer in the world has certainly served him well.

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