Principal dancers Fergus Fitzpatrick and Anna Mai Fitzpatrick with the New Generation dancers in Riverdance’s 30th anniversary show, on tour at York Barbican from tomorrow to Sunday
RIVERDANCE is celebrating its 30th anniversary with its New Generation of pounding Irish dancers, on the beat at York Barbican from tomorrow (24/10/2025) to Sunday.
Not one of them was born when Irish composer Bill Whelan originated Riverdance as an interval act at the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest in Dublin, featuring Irish dancing champions Michael Flatley and Jean Butler and the vocal ensemble Anúna.
Husband-and-wife production team John McColgan and Moya Doherty soon converted it into a stage show that opened in Dublin on February 9 1995.
Whelan, McColgan and Doherty remain at the helm for Riverdance: The New Generation as composer, director and producer respectively on the 30-venue UK tour – one for each year – that runs from August 12 to December 14.
The New Generation production of this Grammy award-winning show rejuvenates the format with innovative choreography and costumes and state-of-the art lighting, projection and motion graphics.
Riverdance principal dancer Anna Mai Fitzpatrick: Dancing since the age of four
Director John McColgan says: “It is both a privilege and a delight to celebrate 30 years of Riverdance and the unique journey it has taken us on. In those 30 years, the show has transformed from a spectacle into a global cultural phenomenon, continuously evolving yet remaining true to its Irish roots.
“On this tour we welcoming ‘the New Generation’ of artists while paying tribute to the talented performers, creators, dedicated crew, and the millions of fans who have made Riverdance a worldwide celebration of music and dance.”
Among the principal dancers in a show that blends the traditional and the contemporary in a showcase of dancers, singers and musicians will be brother-and-sister dance captains Fergus Fitzpatrick and Anna Mai Fitzpatrick.
“Fergus and I both joined the company about eight years ago,” says Anna Mai. “So we saw Riverdance through its 25th anniversary, just before Covid, when the score had been recomposed by Bill Whelan.”
“We started Irish dancing at a young age, at eight in my case, and Anna Mai was four,” says Fergus. “We started by going to after-school dance classes at the local primary school, at Navan in County Meath, and I first saw the Riverdance show a couple of years later on TV.
Fergus Fitzpatrick: World champion-turned-Riverdance principal dancer
“It looked like they were having so much fun with their friends on stage, and after that show, I remember trying to do the moves around the coffee table in the living toom!”
Anna Mai rejoins: “Yeah, it looked like they were having the best time of their lives on stage, and even at that age, I was up on my feet trying to replicate it.”
Both becoming dance champions, they caught the Riverdance bug and love being part of the New Generation show. “We train our whole life to be on stage, and we wouldn’t know what to do if we weren’t performers,” says Anna Mai. “Like anything, you have to put everything into it, all your willpower.”
Fergus says: “Once we’re on tour, we’re together for almost 24 hours a day: eating together, dancing together, staying together in the hotel – and there are plenty of siblings in the show, so it’s good to have that camaraderie off stage as well as on.”
Everyone is pulling in the same direction: the production team, the dancers, the singers, the musicians. “Absolutely,” says Fergus. “The team that you see are very like-minded, and the audience can feel it: they see the beautiful harmony between us and the team behind the scenes, making us look good. It’s a really talented team with a shared vision.
“Fergus and I are very lucky to have each other there on tour, and we can always reach out to each other,” says sister Anna Mai
“The New Generation brings a great energy to this version of the show. We’ve only known life in Riverdance, and we feel the responsibility of the legacy.”
Anna Mai is full of admiration for the work of Whelan and McColgan. “They always do such an incredible job of taking care of the show for now and for future generations as ambassadors for the culture of Ireland,” she says. “We are always so grateful to them for keeping the magic that we all know and love.”
Injuries are part and parcel of a dancer’s life, but Anna Mai says: “A lot of it goes back to preparation. The risk of injury goes with any sport or physical activity, but in those activities, there also can be ‘mental injury’, where you’re not in a good place.”
She, however, is very much in a good place. To keep in top condition, “we work with physiotherapists and massage therapists who travel with us on tour,” she says.
“As much as it’s a dream to be doing Riverdance, it’s also a job, and it’s up to us to be able to prepare to do our job. Fergus and I are very lucky to have each other there on tour, and we can always reach out to each other.”
“We approach a set of live dates in a scientific way now,” says Fergus
Fergus adds: “We approach a set of live dates in a scientific way now. We think about how many shows there will be, what we will need in the way of recovery, how we will sustain being at the top of our game for so many shows.
“And of course the team helps us; Riverdance knows that we need a masseur on the road with us, a company physio, that kind of thing, to keep our bodies conditioned”.
Anna Mai comments: “Because we and the show have been to many of these places and cities before, we have connections that we can tap into. And we love to use our time off and get to know an area even better, do some touristy things, catch up with old friends.
“With Riverdance, many things are constantly changing; you will never be on the road with exactly the same people, on exactly the same tour routing. There is always a new energy, a new buzz, and that’s really fun to feed off. We’re making memories together.”
Fergus is looking forward to this week’s performances at York Barbican. “We’ve performed in York before and we absolutely loved it. It’s such a beautiful city and the audiences are incredible,” he says.
“It was late 2021 when we last came, when the venues opened up again, and we can’t wait to get back there. There’s definitely an energy there. That magic. A feeling you get, that energy, that crescendo, the moments of emotion, when the audience jump to their feet. That’s a great feeling.”
Traditional Irish dancing may be done with “arms down by your side”, but Riverdance’s combination of the traditional and the contemporary, the Irish and the international, means that “in our professional dancing, we do use the arms more,” says Anna Mai.
“It’s really good fun to get to explore that in the shows. If you look back to the synchronicity of the dancing at the Eurovision show, it was all arms by the side, but we will hold hands at times in our show and support the lead dancer with our hands, and that’s an exciting development.”
Summing up the abiding popularity of Riverdance, Anna Mai concludes: “There is always something new in the way the show resonates. I have seen the show many times and it always hits me differently, on a certain night, one particular number might really affect you; there is so much to experience, the phenomenal music as well as the dancers, all the different styles.
“It is never the same. It’s hard to describe the magic of Riverdance to someone who hasn’t seen it. It’s the human emotion that keeps the fans coming back. They come for the feeling that they leave the show with.”
Riverdance, 30th Anniversary Tour, The New Generation, York Barbican, October 24 to 26, 7.30pm, Friday to Sunday, plus 2.30pm Saturday and Sunday matinees. Box office: yorkbarbican.co.uk.
Sibling synchronicity: Anna Mai Fitzpatrick and Fergus Fitzpatrick are principal dancers and dance captains in Riverdance’s 30th anniversary show
Fergus Fitzpatrick and Anna Mai Fitzpatrick: back story
FERGUS, from County Meath, Ireland, discovered his passion for dance at the age of eight. With his sister Anna Mai, he grew up competing internationally in Irish dancing competitions.
Under the tutelage of Holly and Kavanagh Academy of Irish Dance, Fergus achieved his dream of becoming a world champion in 2017.
Joined Riverdance, performing in Gaiety Theatre, Dublin. As principal dancer, he has performed in prestigious venues such as Radio City Music Hall, New York, and Hammersmith Apollo, London.
Other productions include Heartbeat Of Home at Piccadilly Theatre, London, and London Palladium.
“Only the best dancers will make it to Riverdance,” says Fergus. “It takes a lot of hard work for a lot of years, a lot of drive. In the back of our minds when we started dancing, the end goal was always Riverdance.
“However, before you get there, there is a whole competition scene. Now though, as principal dancer I also feel that I need to outwork the younger guys who are coming through! They are so good, and of course they want my job, so I need to work hard and work smart.”
“As principal dancer I feel that I need to outwork the younger guys who are coming through!” says Fergus
ANNA Mai began her dance journey at the age of four and danced competitively for 16 years alongside brother Fergus. From a young age, Irish Dance was her passion.
Won many major championships includingAll-Ireland Championships, Great Britain Championships and British Nationals.
Joined Riverdance in 2017, touring China with Fergus, then performed with Riverdance at Gaiety Theatre, Dublin, for two summer seasons.
Moved into principal role in 2020, touring with the show on UK national tour, at Expo Dubai in North American, Europe, and China, Australia and Japan tour.
Toured with Heartbeat O Home, making debut as principal dancer at Piccadilly Theatre in London’s West End.
“A love for the dancing and the show is crucial,” says Anna Mai. “That’s the dream I suppose, for any job, and we do wholeheartedly love what we do. That is what pushes me to be that one per cent better every day, keep the fire burning.
“The show takes a lot of work. When the audience sees the cast on stage, they see the glamorous end to what has been the work of an entire team helping each other to get to that point. We love the entire process.”
