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Dutch Michael Flatley is hard shoe sensation!

MEGHAN SWEENEY

IrishCentral.Com Staff Writer

Published Wednesday, April 8, 2009, 7:48 PM

Updated Thursday, July 23, 2009, 5:46 PM

Read more: Philadelphia, Competitive Dance, Dance, Entertainment, Irish Dance, Performing Arts

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It’s a great view from backstage at the Perelman Theater in the Kimmel Center, Philadelphia, at the World Irish Dancing Championships.

IrishCentral.com caught a glimpse of Sandun Verschoor of the Redmond School in Amsterdam performing his hard shoe routine – and it was breathtaking.

By the looks of it, Sandun, 16, who’s a big fan of Michael Flatley, may just be the next Lord of the Dance.

We caught Sandun as he was exiting stage left, and though he just gave the performance of a lifetime, he still agreed to do a few steps for us and chat for couple of minutes.

Sandun, who’s from Rotterdam in the Netherlands, competed in the Boys 15-16 Heavy and Light solo competition. He competed in the Worlds last year as well, and proudly told IrishCentral of his 10th place win then.

Tenth place in Scotland, and then it was on to America for the gifted dancer. Sandun is excited to be in Philadelphia, and has very much enjoyed the sightseeing during his visit. “I haven’t seen much of Philadelphia, so it was nice,” Sandun said of his touring.

Amsterdam is not your typical hub of Irish culture, so we wondered how Sandun became interested in Irish dancing.

“I’ve been watching ‘Riverdance’ for years,” he said. “And everybody likes Michael Flatley.”

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Irish dance can broadly be divided into social dance and performance dances. Irish social dances can be divided further into ceili and set dancing. Irish ceili dances are danced by formations (ceili) of couples of 2 to 8 people. Irish social dance is a living tradition, and variations in particular dances are found across the Irish dance community; in some places, dances are deliberately modified and new dances are choreographed. Irish performance dancie is traditionally referred to as stepdance. Irish stepdance, popularized in 1994 by the world-famous show "Riverdance," is notable for its rapid leg movements, body and arms being kept largely stationary. Most competitive stepdances are solo dances, though many stepdancers also perform and compete using ceili dances. The solo stepdance is generally characterized by a controlled but not rigid upper body, straight arms, and quick, precise movements of the feet. The traditions of Irish dance probably grew in close association with Irish traditional music. Originating in Pre-Christian Ireland, Irish dance was later influenced by dance forms from Europe. Travelling Irish dance masters taught all over Ireland, as late as the early 1900s. As the Irish peoples migrated to other hills, they have taken sean-nos dancing with them. This form of Irish dance then has influenced various other forms of traditional solo dance extant in those other lands — such as American traditional informal freeform solo folk dancing. Old-style step dancing (a tradition related to, yet distinct from, sean-nos dancing) evolved in the late 18th and early 19th century from the dancing of traveling Irish dance masters. The Irish dance masters slowly formalized and transformed both solo and social dances. Modern masters of old-style step dancing style can trace the lineage of their steps directly back to 18th century dancers. The Irish dance masters refined and codified indigenous Irish dance traditions. Rules emerged about proper upper body, arm, and foot placement. Also, dancers were instructed to dance a step twice — once with the left foot and once with the right. Old-style step dancers dance with arms loosely (but not rigidly) at their sides. They dance in a limited space. There is an emphasis on making percussive sound with the toes. Irish social, or ceili dances vary widely throughout Ireland and the rest of the world. A céilí dance may be performed with as few as two people and as many as eight. Ceili dances may also be danced with an unlimited number of couples in a long line or proceeding around in a circle (such as in "The Walls of Limerick", "The Waves of Tory", or "Bonfire Dance". Ceili dances are often fast and complex. In a social setting, a céilí dance may be "called" — that is, the upcoming steps are announced during the dance for the benefit of newcomers. The term ceili dance was invented in the late 19th century by the Gaelic League Ceili as a noun instead of an adjective. A ceili is a social gathering featuring Irish music and dance. Ceili dancing is a specific type of Irish dance. Some will only have céilí dancing, some will only have set dancing, and some will have a mixture. In various parts of Ireland on St. Stephen's Day, December 26th, Wrenboys (mummers) celebrate Wren Day (also pronounced as the Wran) by dressing up in straw masks and colorful clothing and parading through towns and villages accompanied by traditional ceili music bands.

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