'Riverdance' brings artistry and athleticism to Show Me Center

Since "Riverdance" opened Feb. 9, 1995, at the Point Theatre in Dublin, Ireland, it has been performed all over the world. The cast has changed in those 16 years, but the show continues to wow crowds with energetic dance and passionate music.

The multinational, award-winning program will be in Cape Girardeau for one show Jan. 25. Tickets are still available at the Show Me Center box office or online.

"Riverdance" features traditional Irish stepdancing, which is easily recognized from the dancers, who remain nearly still from the waist up while their legs and feet move quickly to the beat. The show helped bring Irish stepdance into the spotlight and continues to expose the dance style to crowds around the world.

Craig Ashurst, lead male dancer in the production coming to the Show Me Center, began his dancing career in Melbourne, Australia, at age 5 and continued to train, winning state and regional titles and eventually competing on the global stage at the World Championships. In his role with "Riverdance," he has toured Asia, Europe and North America and said he is happy being a professional dancer.

"It's been an explosion of excitement the whole time, and I'm incredibly lucky and honored to be able to perform the role in front of all these people," Ashurst said.

He has been in "Riverdance" for six years and has performed in the lead role since 2007.

"The American audiences are always so lively and appreciative, and it makes you want to perform even harder," he said.

With this tour, Ashurst said, the troupe is playing in a lot of "college towns," which is interesting to him because there is always a buzz around the place.

"It shows through our performance and then of course the audience, also," Ashurst said. "These American college towns are pretty energetic. I'm extremely excited to be able to go to all of these smaller towns to let all of America see the show."

"Riverdance" uses around 60 cast and crew for the production. The performers travel on tour buses during the day, and the crew travels overnight before them.

"The crew works quite hard to get to these cities and set up the show," Ashurst said. "It's a really well organized production. We had a lot of rehearsal time at the start to make this happen."

This production of "Riverdance" is traveling to 76 cities in five and a half months. Though the production is scaled down from the arena-sized shows, Ashurst said it is still incredible.

The show comes with a live band and music composed by Bill Whelan, who received a Grammy Award in 1997 for Best Musical Show Album.

Bruce Skinner of Cape Girardeau said he is excited about seeing the performance live.

"For me, it's the mix of the music and the dance, and I've always been impressed both artistically and athletically with the pace of the dancers," Skinner said.

Skinner said he saw a smaller production on a cruise but is looking forward to seeing the full show. "It was still impressive, but it wasn't the full effect with live music and the lighting."

"Riverdance" tickets are $38, $47 and $58.50 -- with discounts available for Southeast Missouri State University students -- and are available by calling the Show Me Center box office at 651-5000.

Pertinent address: Show Me Center, 1333 N Sprigg Street, Cape Girardeau, MO