The problem that I and many of the people that I know have with Riverdance was not the the show but it was the fact that it didn't develop and it it refect backwards. People assume that Riverdance is Irish dance and anything else is not. If you have a company of dancers that all about the same size and shape you can do wonders. On one notible occasion one of Cat's dancing teachers sorted her kids out in size to work on displays three months before a big festival. By the time they got to the festival they had all grown and developed at different rates so vision had be obscured.

On the positive side. It brought many kids in to Irish dancing, especially the boys. For a while there was a trend for simpler dresses in competition for the older girls. Unfortunatly this didn't last. ( you do not want to know the price of Irish dancing competition dresses). People also got into the music from there - which has to be a good thing. Some kids I know had the chance to work with a large dance company which will stay with them regardless of what they do next.

Julie