Michael Keegan-Dolan

Michael Keegan-Dolan
Born
Michael Dolan

1969
Dublin
EducationCentral School of Ballet
Occupation(s)Dancer, choreographer
StyleContemporary dance
SpouseRachel Poirier
Children2
Websitehttps://teacdamsa.com/

Michael Keegan-Dolan (born 1969)[1] is an Irish choreographer and dancer. He is the founder of Teaċ Daṁsa and the Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre company.

Career

Keegan-Dolan trained as a dancer at the Central School of Ballet in London.[2] He became an associate artist at Sadler's Wells, the UK's primary contemporary dance theatre.[3]

A limited dancer,[4] he moved into choreography, working on productions at Royal Opera House, the English National Opera, and the National Theatre.[5]

Returning to Longford in Ireland, he founded the Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre in 1997. Among its productions, Giselle,[6] The Bull[7] and The Rite of Spring[8] were nominated for Olivier Awards.

In 2014, he dissolved the company and re-emerged[tone] with Teaċ Daṁsa (teach damhsa, Irish for "house of dance", stylised with an overdot used in traditional Irish orthography) in 2016.[3] Based in the Irish-speaking Gaeltacht area of County Kerry in the south-west of the country,[9] its first work was Swan Lake/Loch na hEala, a reimagining of the Tchaikovsky standard that disregards the original score.[10]

A man in dark clothes stands behind a female dancer in white
Swan Lake/Loch na hEala at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, New York, in 2019

Mám, with music by west Kerry concertina maestro Cormac Begley and Berlin orchestral collective Stargaze, debuted in Dublin in 2019.[11] Described as a "mysterious, mythic" work,[12] it moves on from previous retellings of classic ballets and tales to build a work responding to the original music, with dancers' individual, stylised solos continually giving way to ensemble pieces.[13] It was performed at and part-produced by Sadler's Wells in London. It has also been performed in the United States, Germany, Italy, Australia, New Zealand and Taiwan, in addition to a tour of regional arts venues in Ireland.[14]

"How To Be A Dancer in Seventy-Two Thousand Easy Lessons", a biographical work in collaboration with Keegan-Dolan's partner and longtime collaborator Rachel Poirier, followed in 2023. Unusually,[according to whom?] he danced in the production.[15]

Nobodaddy debuted in September 2024 at the Waterfront Hall in Belfast, followed by runs at the Dublin Theatre Festival and Sadler's Wells in London. It is named after a figure from the poetry of William Blake. US folk musician Sam Amidon supplied much of the music and performed in the show.[16]

Biography

Keegan-Dolan was raised in Clontarf, a suburb on Dublin's northside.[2] His father is from Longford and Keegan-Dolan describes the county as home.[17][9] His first dance lessons came late, at the age of 17 at Billie Barry School in Dublin.[3] He moved to London to train in ballet at the Central School of Ballet.

He is married to Rachel Poirier, a dancer and longtime collaborator.[5] They have two children.[3] Their daughter has also performed in his work.[18]

He was born Michael Dolan. His great-uncle, Edward Keegan, fought with the Irish Volunteers in 1916 and acted at the Abbey Theatre. Keegan-Dolan added his great-uncle's name to his own.[5]

In addition to dance influences, he cites American musician David Byrne, Irish singer Liam Ó Maonlaí and Irish playwright Enda Walsh as having had an impact on his development.[2]

Work

Teac Damsa

  • Nobodaddy (2024)
  • How To Be A Dancer in Seventy-Two Thousand Easy Lessons (2023)
  • Mám (2019)
  • Swan Lake/Loch na hEala (2016)

Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre

  • The Rite of Spring/Petruska (2014)
  • Julius Caesar (2012)
  • Rian (2011)
  • Helen + Hell (2010)
  • The Rite of Spring (2009)
  • James Son of James (2007)
  • The Bull (2005)
  • Giselle (2003)
  • The Christmas Show (2001)
  • The Flowerbed (2000)
  • Fragile (1999)

References

  1. ^ "Associate Artists - Michael Keegan-Dolan - Sadler's Wells". 20 May 2022. Archived from the original on 20 May 2022. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  2. ^ a b c Fitzpatrick, Richard (9 July 2023). "Culture That Made Me: Michael Keegan-Dolan on dance heroes and great music". Irish Examiner. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  3. ^ a b c d "Michael Keegan-Dolan: Back on the boards". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  4. ^ Harss, Marina (20 October 2023). "Movement and Memory: Dance Love and Dance Rejection in Ireland". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  5. ^ a b c "Michael Keegan-Dolan: Back on the boards". The Irish Times. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  6. ^ "Olivier Winners 2006". Olivier Awards. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  7. ^ "Olivier Winners 2008". Olivier Awards. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  8. ^ "Olivier Awards Winners 2010 -Official London Theatre". Olivier Awards. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  9. ^ a b O'Connor, Derek (7 June 2023). "Michael Keegan-Dolan on MÁM's return: "It's about connection"". rte.ie.
  10. ^ Mackrell, Judith (28 November 2016). "Swan Lake/Loch na hEala five-star review – a bleak and beautiful dream". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  11. ^ "Mám review: Stirring, sensuous showcase of the physical form". The Irish Times. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  12. ^ "A Tradition Carried Forward". The Journal of Music | News, Reviews and Opinion. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  13. ^ Levene, Louise (6 February 2020). "Michael Keegan-Dolan's MÁM — a dazzling dance marathon at Sadler's Wells". Financial Times. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  14. ^ "MÁM – 2023/24 Tour". Teac Damsa. 17 May 2023. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  15. ^ Meany, Helen (19 July 2023). "How to Be a Dancer in 72,000 Easy Lessons review – the evolution of expression". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 March 2024.
  16. ^ "Motion and emotion: Watching as Michael Keegan-Dolan's Nobodaddy takes shape at Teach Damhsa". The Irish Times. Retrieved 13 November 2024.
  17. ^ Finnan, Sarah (15 June 2023). "Olivier award nominee Michael Keegan-Dolan on his new show and why you 'can't fool' an Irish audience". IMAGE.ie. Retrieved 8 March 2024.
  18. ^ Winship, Lyndsey (6 February 2020). "Mám review – spellbinding gathering of music and memories". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 8 March 2024.