Just saw this in the paper today, anyone seen it yet?
Here's the review from the Ottawa Citizen. I get the feeling she missed the point, but it is still funny.
Celtic Tiger rips apart Irish roots
by Janice Kennedy
The first hint that real Irish eyes won't be smiling at Michael Flatley's new dance extravaganza, Celtic Tiger, comes a heartbeat into the show when the American hoofer makes his entrance.
Flatley, who first clip-clopped his way to international stardom a decade ago with the Riverdance sensation, appears in Roman centurion garb, despite leggins that look like Adidas track pants. Since Celtic Tiger aims to give the history of Ireland in two hours... one assumes that the star centurion is intent on conquering the Druidic little island just west of Britain.
This comes as a bit of a surprise, since the real Romans never invaded Ireland. But the show... manages to surprise all night long.
It is surprising, for instance, to learn that the Great Hunger was marked by lithe, half-naked women crawling along the ground. Or that early Irish monks looked like a Broadway chorus line (in fabulous robes, darling). Or that Bloody Sunday, that 1972 tragedy that still echoes in Derry homes today, was nothing more that a whacking good excuse for a big special-effects boom and a delighted Corel Centre chorus of "oohs."
In Flatley's version of Irish history, the invading Brits, smartly bewigged and singing a rousing chorus of Rule Britannia, are really just jolly good fellows. When the redcoats break into an inexplicable, if energetic, round of traditional Irish stepdancing, the effect would be not unlike getting the Queen to hoist a Guinness and shout "Up the Republic!"
Most surprising of all is the fact that a show called Celtic Tiger spends its entire second half in an orgy of over-the-top American patriotism, with more spangled stars per square inch than a Detroit car dealer's flag...
True, the United States was indeed the promised land for generations of Irish emigrants, which explains some of Act 2 - but the Al Capone sequence remains baffling. As does the tribute to the Dallas Cowboys. And the bizzare scene that has a bespectacled stewardess surrounded by a menacing circle of pilots (led by Captain Flatley) suddenly doing a strip-tease to reveal the skimpiest of stars and stripes.
...
But as a celebration of Irish dancing, Celtic Tiger is nothing but Vegas junk food.
Celtic Tiger Review (not me)
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missy
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Re: Celtic Tiger Review (not me)
well - he IS from Chicago!OnTheMoor wrote:
True, the United States was indeed the promised land for generations of Irish emigrants, which explains some of Act 2 - but the Al Capone sequence remains baffling.
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Tyler
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Re: Celtic Tiger Review (not me)
tiger, eh?
Do they have tigers in Ireland?
Maybe what he meant was "Celtic Tigger"...
...more proof that your average 'merican don't know nuffin 'bout dhe werld outside of 'merica.OnTheMoor wrote:
This comes as a bit of a surprise, since the real Romans never invaded Ireland.
Half naked women dont make you hungry?It is surprising, for instance, to learn that the Great Hunger was marked by lithe, half-naked women crawling along the ground.
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Thanks, man, you just made my day!!! I needed a good belly-laugh
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My husband was looking through the stations one night (yes...it's football season thus we have cable again ), and lo and behold it was on PBS. He stopped and said "Do you want to watch this??". Unfortunately, I think he was serious....I gagged a couple of times before I told him absolutely not. But that wasn't before I saw some silly little vaudeville-esque American patriot type thing. The 30 seconds I had to endure was more than enough. From that little snippet, there was no way I knew that it was supposed to be about Irish history. The girls were all decked out as "Aunt" Sam, along with skimpy little bikini tops where you were just waiting for something to pop out as they bounced around. It was quite disturbing, not to mention just plain stupid. And that was only 30 seconds...I can only imagine what the rest of it was like.
), and lo and behold it was on PBS. He stopped and said "Do you want to watch this??". Unfortunately, I think he was serious....I gagged a couple of times before I told him absolutely not. But that wasn't before I saw some silly little vaudeville-esque American patriot type thing. The 30 seconds I had to endure was more than enough. From that little snippet, there was no way I knew that it was supposed to be about Irish history. The girls were all decked out as "Aunt" Sam, along with skimpy little bikini tops where you were just waiting for something to pop out as they bounced around. It was quite disturbing, not to mention just plain stupid. And that was only 30 seconds...I can only imagine what the rest of it was like.Someday, everything is gonna be diff'rent
When I paint my masterpiece.
When I paint my masterpiece.
