ShareFergus Fitzpatrick, a lead dancer with the Irish music and dance show, Riverdance, chats with Kevin Cooper about performing with his sister Anna-Mai, what makes Riverdance so special, life after Riverdance and their forthcoming 2025 30th Anniversary UK Tour.
Fergus Fitzpatrick is a lead dancer with Riverdance, a show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during The Eurovision Song Contest in 1994, which was transmitted to an estimated three hundred million viewers worldwide. The act featured Irish Dancing Champions Jean Butler and Michael Flatley. Shortly after that performance husband and wife production team, John McColgan and Moya Doherty expanded it into a stage show which opened in Dublin on 9th February 1995.
The show continues to tour the world and as of 2023 Riverdance has played more than fifteen thousand performances across forty nine countries and six continents. The show has been seen live by more than thirty million people.
Fergus Fitzpatrick, who comes from Co. Meath, Ireland, discovered his passion for dance at the age of eight. With his sister Anna-Mai, who is also a lead dancer in the same show, he grew up competing internationally in Irish dancing competitions. Under the tutelage of The Holly and Kavanagh Academy of Irish Dance, Fergus achieved his dream of becoming a world champion in 2017.
He joined Riverdance performing in the renowned Gaiety Theatre in Dublin and as a Principal Dancer he has performed in many prestigious venues including Radio City Music Hall in New York and The Hammersmith Apollo in London.
Whilst busy preparing for their forthcoming tour of the UK, Fergus Fitzpatrick took some time out to have a chat with Kevin Cooper and this is what he had to say.
Good afternoon Fergus, how are you?
I’m good thanks how are you?
I’m very well thank you and before we move on let me thank you for taking the time to speak to me today.
It’s no problem at all.
And just how is life treating you at this moment in time?
Life’s great, all good, in fact at this minute life couldn’t be better.
We have to talk about the forthcoming Riverdance The 30th Anniversary Tour.
Okay go for it (laughter).
I have to ask you were you chosen to join the company of Riverdance or did you have to audition?
It was kind of a mixture of both for me. There is a huge competitive scene in Irish dancing. There is a general passage as you go through the competition scene before you go into the show. That acts as a scaling ground for the casting directors of Riverdance. Although it’s a huge competitive scene it’s also a small world where you get to know people, so I reached out to former lead and current Riverdance CEO Padraic Moyles telling him that I was interested in joining the cast of Riverdance if an audition was possible. As a result, I was asked to come in for a week long training session which was also my audition. I did my first show later the following week, and that was back in 2017. I have been with the company for eight years now, and I have to say that it has absolutely been a dream come true.
Was it always your ambition to be in Riverdance?
Yes, it really was ever since I was a kid watching Riverdance on the TV. My first and earliest memories of Riverdance are of watching it on TV rather than seeing it in a theatre which is different from Anna-Mai my sister, who actually saw it live in theatre for the first time. I saw it on TV and I absolutely loved it. To me it just looked like so much fun. At that time Anna-Mai was already taking Irish dancing classes so after I saw Riverdance I saw just how good Anna-Mai was getting I decided to tag along and go to the classes with her. We both just started going to even more classes, then we both entered competitions. Then the competitions just got bigger, the competitions then became international, and then I was old enough to get the opportunity to join Riverdance. However, I have to say that always in the back of my mind Riverdance was always the goal.
You mention Anna-Mai; this will be the very first time ever that a brother and sister have been principal dancers in a production of Riverdance. That must feel special?
That’s right, we are the first brother and sister to be principal dancers and let me tell you, it really is special. Our whole family are super proud of us and every one of them has sacrificed so much in order for the two of us to get where we are at this moment. They would always be taking us here, there and everywhere to dance classes or a competition and we are both are so very grateful to them for everything that they have done. So yes, it is really special, and we are so glad to be in a position to give them something back whenever they come to see us in the show.
When you and Anna-Mai were both starting out could you ever envisage the two of you dancing together in something as special as Riverdance?
Do you know what, I did kind of see that happening in a way, but I have to be totally honest with you and say that I don’t know how much I believed it (laughter). However, in the back of my mind I did see something like that happening but never to this extent. It is genuinely a dream come true. We got the Riverdance box set for Christmas one year and we just watched it the whole time. It is difficult for me to put it into words other than saying that it really is a dream come true. I know that is quite a cliché, but it genuinely is.
Am I to believe that this is the very first time that the whole of the company are actually younger than the show?
(Laughter) yes that is correct. That is why the production has been renamed Riverdance The New Generation. There is a whole new generation of performers here who have not known life without Riverdance. When it first aired at the Eurovision Song Contest back in 1994 every one of our performers were born after that date (laughter). So, there is a whole new energy there; there is a new lease of life which has given the show a lift with that new generation. I have to say that the whole show has got a new feel to it; everything feels a little bit newer.
You mention Eurovision back in 1994 and in just seven minutes John McColgan, Moya Doherty, William Michael Joseph ‘Bill’ Whelan and whatever you think of him, a certain Michael Ryan Flatley created something phenomenal.
You have got to give credit to the producer Moya Doherty, the director John McColgan, and of course the composer of Riverdance Bill Whelan; what an incredible team. Nobody knew back then what a global sensation it was going to become, and to be here were we are some thirty years later still talking about that night; it really is incredible. The Riverdance phenomenon has provided jobs for the likes of myself and countless others for the past thirty years. All that I can say is that we are so very grateful for that. We are so very grateful that the creative team take so very much care of Riverdance and modernise it with the times with new technology, changing the costumes, improving the sets; they just take such good care of Riverdance, and we are all so appreciative of them for looking after what inspired us to take up Irish dancing.
Putting you firmly on the spot, in your opinion, what makes Riverdance so special?
(Laughter) thanks for that. I feel that it genuinely is a fusion of many different things. It is a collaboration of many different things. You have got the timeless music of Bill Whelan; I personally have listened to the music of the show at least a hundred times and I never ever get sick of it; I love it so much. Every time that the lights go down and the music starts, I get goose bumps, I get excited, I get nervous, all of those things still happen, and don’t forget that I have been dancing in the show for eight years now (laughter). I think that it is a combination of the music and then the team in general. Everybody has the same goal, everybody works together, we want to improve every single night, and I think that’s what makes Riverdance magical.
Millions would agree with you.
Yes, maybe (laughter).
What was life like for Fergus Fitzpatrick before Riverdance?
I was in college where I was studying Information Technology and Irish Dancing. Life was good but I always focused on Irish Dancing, and I was focused on the competitive scene a hell of a lot. Any spare time that I had when I wasn’t doing my studies I was always going to dancing classes, I was getting lifts, I was travelling, I was going to competition;, everything that I did was always dancing orientated. There are always major competitions in Irish Dancing, and you find yourself living from competition to competition, in preparation for what’s coming up. That is what my life was at that moment in time whereas now it is much more enjoyable because you get to perform eight times per week in front of live audiences rather than one big competition every three months or so. I am just so grateful and happy to be a part of Riverdance and at the same time get to live out my dream.
They say that all the Welsh can sing, can all the Irish dance?
(Laughter) well at some point I think that it is a part of growing up in Ireland to have to do an Irish dance in class. I personally feel that is a great thing to have, it is a part of our culture. I think that for the likes of myself I just stuck with it and just fell in love with it. I think that it is almost like a rite of passage to go to an Irish Dancing class when you are growing up in Ireland.
We have briefly mentioned the tour, just how many bodies involved with the show are out there on the road when you tour Riverdance?
We have twenty-five Irish dancers, we have a Flamenco dancer, two American tap dancers, four Folk dancers, a four-piece live band, so that covers all of the performers and behind the scenes we have a great team of twenty crew members. So, you are roughly looking at fifty people.
You have travelled around the world with Riverdance. Where has been your favourite place to perform?
My favourite place to perform, now that’s a tough one. If we are talking theatre wise, we did the Radio City Music Hall in New York City this past year and I have to say that really was an incredible moment. I have been so very lucky to be able to perform in places like Japan, Australia, Toronto, Mexico, and of course the UK. The last time that we were over there in the UK in 2021 we played The Palace Theatre and The Apollo Theatre, which was absolutely incredible; it really was a very special moment. So, whilst I’m not trying to evade your question in any way, they would have to be some of the highlights for sure.
With the rigours of performing eight shows per week, what is your expected work lifespan whilst you are in Riverdance; how do you look after your feet?
That really is a great question. We all look at ourselves as athletes, we train like athletes, and we look after our bodies as much as we can. We travel with a massage therapist together with a physiotherapist in an effort to keep us in top condition. We all have an ice bath after every single show. We are always warming up and cooling down, stretching, and there are workouts which take place at the side of the stage during the show. Whenever we are not in rehearsals and we have some downtime, you will always find us in the gym. One of the major things which we all take on board is our nutrition, and make sure that we stay hydrated throughout the day. We take our jobs very seriously, and a great way to do that is to look after your body. In terms of lifespan, we have full time professional dancers in the show who are well into their 30’s so it’s not that far off what a ballerina would do, but ballerinas most certainly have a longer lifespan in that sense.
So, from your point of view, what gives up first, your feet, knees, ankles or hips or in a worst-case scenario, all four?
To be totally honest with you I think that it really does depend upon the individual. The four that you have mentioned would be the main culprits for sure, the knees, the hips, the ankles and the feet.
Whenever I see Riverdance and you perform what I can only describe as an ankle roll, I always think that if a professional footballer did that they would be out of the game for three months (laughter).
(Hysterical laughter) it’s a different skill set for sure.
Have you personally had any bad injuries?
When I was in the competitions, I had a stress fracture in the bottom of my foot and it was a tiny hairline fracture in a bone, and I was out for nine months with it, because I couldn’t walk properly, I couldn’t put any weight on it. It was the tiniest fracture, but I was out for nine months with it.
Do you have your feet insured?
My feet are not insured, no.
Do you ever think of life after Riverdance?
Yes, we do, we do think about it a lot. After speaking to former members of the show, they all tell me the same thing; try and focus on enjoying yourself whilst you are here because it is such a limited amount of time that you actually get to do this so try to really enjoy it while you are actually here. Don’t worry too much about the future; you know that it’s coming and you should be as prepared as possible. I really want to keep going with it as much as I can; I just enjoy it so much. Whilst I don’t want to focus too much on the future and try to live for what is happening right now.
Everyone, me included, always talk about the physical side of things but what about the breathing, how do you control your breathing?
Wow, good question. Breathing is something that we all have to practice, especially when you are performing the lead solos. You have to choreograph your breath, when it should happen and if you want it to be an inhale or exhale. We do a lot of breathing exercises. I don’t know if you are familiar with Vim Hof, also known as The Iceman. He is a Dutch motivational speaker and extreme athlete noted for his ability to withstand low temperatures. He also produces some great videos that you can follow and go along with in order to practice your breathing exercises. We do a lot of that while we are on tour and it really helps.
Growing up, was there music in the house?
There was, yes there was, and it mostly came from our mother. Our mother did ballet when she was younger, not professionally, but she did it and she had that creative mind. She was also a musician, she played the piano, and she was the main force in the house for the creative side of the arts. She led the way for me and Anna-Mai to pursue that.
And what about dad?
Dad was a sportsman; he played football, which got me into playing football as well. Having said that, at some point dance just took over and then there was no time for me to go to football training (laughter).
Whenever you get any downtime, who do you listen to?
I love to listen to a wide range of artists; I love the Foo Fighters, U2, Coldplay, all of those alternate rock bands. I love listening to them plus anyone Irish as well. I like to try out artists such as Hozier and I love this new band called Amble, they are fantastic. They play modern folk music; you should really check them out.
What was the last song or piece of music that made you cry?
I have to say that’s a great question. My brother is a director, and he directed a music video for the band Amble who have just released an album call Reverie. I watched the video and listened to the track and that made me shed a tear. It is a beautiful music video about loss and that made me cry for sure.
On that note Fergus let me once again thank you for taking the time to speak to me today, it’s been absolutely delightful.
Thank you so much Kevin. I will see you on Saturday 4th October when we get over to Nottingham. Bye for now.