Riverdance in Columbus, OH

February 20, 2011

Craig Ashurst, Lead Dancer, Shannon Company

Columbus is the capital city of Ohio, the home of one of the world’s biggest college campuses (Ohio State University) and the home city of one of the Riverdance greats; Joe Moriarty! Joe has performed with the show for quite some time, performing the lead role for many years. It’s most certainly a treat when you can attract such a large audience following to any show and an even bigger one when you can dance for your family and friends. The stage door of the prestigious Palace Theatre in Columbus was flooded with dancers, family members, fans and on lookers. Such a warm and welcoming crowd appeared to our performances in Columbus, many with the intention of seeing their favourite show and many with the added excitement of watching a native of this hip and happening city perform the lead role.

Joe toured dancers some of us around Columbus, driving us to some of the finer points that this city had to offer. He brought us to the Horse Shoe Stadium. This is home to the Ohio State Football team. Commonly referred to as the Buckeye’s. It has a capacity of 105,00 seats.

After our trip to the large campus area, we walked through the “Short North” district. This was filled with alternating styles of bars, galleries, restaurants and shopping and was only a twenty-minute walk from our hotel. It was also fantastic to witness dance studios around this city with a flair for differing styles.

To add to Joe’s hospitality, he invited the cast and crew of Riverdance to a dance studio after one of our shows. They put food on for us and displayed their own genres of dance, all in this new age studio. Some of the cast tried out our new ballroom skills and passed the test of competency with flying colours.

We now move to West Virginia, I have not yet been to this State so I’m ready to explore.

Craig

Follow Craig on Twitter: twitter.com/craigashurst