Irish-American dancer who taps a magical 28 taps a second. The speed of Flatley’s tapping has put him into the “Guinness Book of Records” as the world’s fastest tapper. His mega-grossing, theater-packing show, “Lord of the Dance” swept the nation in 1997, winning paeans of praise and fervent fans. For those who are not able to see the stage hit, the video of the company shows an incredible performance, a joy to behold.
Flatley, the son of Irish immigrants, has been dancing since he was an 11-year-old kid in an Irish section of Chicago’s South side. His grandmother, herself a championship dancer, introduced him to step dance when he was four. After six years of lessons and competitions, he won the All-World Championships in Irish Dancing, the first American to ever take the title.
He began straying from tradition about a decade ago. Traditionally the dance is performed with the arms alongside the body with the hips, shoulders, even the face held rigid. In “Lord of the Dance,” arms are held high, hips gyrate and dancers flash looks of joy and triumph, to the disapproval of purists.
His first show was put together by a British stage producer who saw him perform and called him. Together they fashioned a full-blown step-dance productions with Flatley’s choreography. “Riverdance” took London’s West End by storm before moving to America. However Flatley was fired eight months into the tour, allegedly for money and copyright disagreements.
In a fine example of turning adversity into triumph, he formed his own company to create “Lord of the Dance.” The current production world tour has grossed more than $100 million to date, selling out at incredible numbers. Flatley has picked up a new Lamborghini for himself and has diamonds in his ears, but is still living in hotels, despite his reported $1 million a month. In 8/1998, Flatley bowed out of the lead role in “Lord…” Even after leaving his hit show, he still remained active in dance with two spin-off troupes: one based in Las Vegas and the other world-traveling. Around the same time period, Flatley began pursuing one of his new interests, acting.
His ten-year marriage to makeup artist Beata Dziaba dissolved in 1995; he filed for divorce 6/13/97 in Los Angeles. His greatest romance at the present is with his Company, and his greatest high, the thrill of the dance.
He was hospitalized in November 2006 for two weeks for treatment of a “severe viral infection and exhaustion.” He was released from the hospital on November 18th.
Link to Wikipedia biography