Well, I agree about the stupid curly-haired wig things, and I'm no fan of the gawd-awful so-called "traditional" dance dresses, either. ('Traditional,' hell--you never saw one of 'em before the twenties, and they just seem to get gaudier and more awful [and more expensive] every year.)

But Riverdance didn't have anything to do with wigs nor gaudy dresses--the competitive Irish dance world has been that way for years, if not generations.

If Riverdance has done anything, it's brought on a generation of little dancers that don't seem to be able to move their feet to anything but recorded, over-produced, nearly-symphonic, pseudo-"traditional" music. It's also brought us a horde of adult beginners in tiny short Jean Butler dresses.

That's not nearly as bad as what the competition and the accompanying medal frenzy does to the art form itself--it's a pity how so many of the kids seem to be in it only for the medals. And it's a judged 'sport,' like figure-skating, and ... well, I've seen kids do steps that should fill them with the joy of it, but they're marked down for who-knows-what mysterious reason, and they leave sobbing.

The curly wigs and such are the result of that atmosphere--as soon as the kids/parents get the idea that scores will suffer without the curls, then no effort will be spared to have the curls.

'Cause if you don't get the medals, why on earth would you ever dance?

Bah.

JtT