Michael Flately
| Michael Flatley | |
|---|---|
|
|
| Born |
Michael Ryan Flatley July 16, 1958 Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Nationality | American, Irish |
| Education | Brother Rice High School |
| Occupation | Dancer, actor, occasional broadcaster, writer, flautist, choreographer |
| Years active | 1991–2015 |
| Known for |
Riverdance (1994–present) Lord of the Dance (1996–present) Feet of Flames (1998–2001) Celtic Tiger (2004–07) |
| Net worth |
 €225 million (2013)(GBP£191 million / US$304 million) |
| Spouse(s) | Beata Dziąba (m. 1986–1997; divorced) Niamh O'Brien (m. 2006) |
| Children | Michael St. James Flatley (b. 2007) |
| Website | michaelflatley |
Michael Ryan Flatley (born July 16, 1958) is an Irish-American dancer, choreographer, and musician. He became internationally known for Irish dance shows Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Feet of Flames, and Celtic Tiger.
Flatley is a native of the South Side of Chicago. He is of Irish background, being born to Irish parents Michael and Eilish. His parents were both Irish-born, but emigrated to the US several years before Michael's birth. Michael is the second of five children. He has three sisters, Anne-Marie, Eliza and Thomasina, as well as a brother Patrick.
He began dancing lessons at age 11 and at age 17 was the first American to secure a World Irish Dance title at Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne (the Irish Dancing World Championships). He is also an accomplished flautist, having won twice in the All-Ireland Fleadh Cheoil Concert Flute competitions from 1975-1976 and later in his career having released two albums. In his youth, Flatley also practiced amateur boxing; at age 17 he competed for the Chicago Golden Gloves Championship title.
Flatley was taught dance by Dennis Dennehy at the Dennehy School of Irish Dance in Chicago, then went on to produce his own show. After graduating from Brother Rice High School, on Chicago's Southwest Side, he opened a dance school, but later closed it down to focus on performing.
From 1978 to 1979 he toured with Green Fields of America, and in the 1980s he toured with The Chieftains.
According to Flatley, he created and choreographed the original Riverdance and led the show to great success as the intermission act in the Eurovision Song Contest staged in Ireland on April 30, 1994. The performance in the Eurovision Song Contest was produced by Moya Doherty. She is married to co-founder of Riverdance, John McColgan, and she is regarded as one of the richest women in Ireland, with an estimated fortune of £42 million. The finale piece was co-choreographed by dance partner Jean Butler with Flatley himself. Butler was his partner in a famous video clip. The response was so explosive that it was extended into a full show, starring Butler and Flatley.
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Wikipedia