Lord of the Dance
"If you love what you do, you don't think about things like that." The question was how does Michael Flatley keep going. "I’m sure Federer doesn’t say to himself he couldn’t hit another ball," he continues. "I love to dance and if you love what you do then it’s not really work. You don’t have to find the energy, somehow you have it, you’re driven to do it."
'Drive' is certainly a word that springs to mind when describing Michael, even if initially he didn't want to dance. "I did the noble thing at the beginning – I was dragged by my ears when I was a young lad, about 11," he admits. That soon changed and he was a world champion at 17, but it's still a major step from keen dancer to leading man, not to mention theatrical impresario and choreographer. Particularly when you could have been a builder.
"I was just so determined," explains Michael. "I knew if I followed my dreams I would eventually get my shot and I did. I remember those days, working hard on building sites. I respect any man that works hard for a living no matter what it is. My father taught me so many valuable lessons in life – the value of hard work and discipline, the value of a dollar. I learnt a lot from him, so those were days that I look back on really fondly."
In terms of keeping things fresh, the advent of 3D has given Lord of the Dance a new lease of life.
"I think 3D is made for Lord of the Dance and Lord of the Dance is made for 3D; we have a fabulous team involved. Marcus Viner our director, he’s a really talented man with endless patience and a wonderful disposition. We’re lucky to be working with them. I hope people won’t be disappointed. I don’t think they will. The footage I’ve seen is really quite sensational, it captures dance in a way I’ve never seen before."
Patience, according to Michael, was a very useful commodity given the technical difficulties involved in bringing the show to the 3D screen.
"We had something like 27 camera angles, we had to film in Dublin over four nights, we filmed in the O2, we filmed in Berlin... It wasn’t all smooth sailing. We had a lot of extra shots to take up, we had to work on days off, we had a lot of close-ups and if we'd had more time, we’d have done more. It was very technical and wonderful, a great new experience, a great new way to see things. It opened up whole new world of ideas and creativity; it was just fun."
It sounds like the making of the film has given Michael a great burst of energy which, after a devastating viral infection a few years ago, is particularly welcome.
"I never want to have to go through that again. Dance was the furthest thing from my mind, all I wanted to do was be able to get up and walk around, to have a conversation with my wife. But it makes me feel like I got a second shot, like this was the greatest comeback of my life: I couldn’t move my little finger, now I’m dancing and selling out shows all over Europe and now the movie? I’m the luckiest guy in the world."
Although Michael admits at the age of 53 it is getting tougher - "I took nearly eight months training, it’s a long task and every year it gets harder and harder" - there's certainly no talk chez Flatley about retirement.
"I never think about it," admits Michael, "but if the time comes when I think to myself you can’t do this properly... then I’ll just walk off into a quiet life and I’ll be happy to do that. I’ll know when that time is.
"Ten years ago I would be coming in at five in the morning from a restaurant, but now if it’s six in the morning my son's jumping up and down on my stomach demanding to see someone called Thomas the Tank Engine! It’s changed my life immeasurably for the better and every minute of it is exciting to me. I don’t see it as tough, just as a wonderful exciting adventure."
Lord of the Dance 3D is out on March 13th, tickets on sale now.
For more information on the cinema performances, see www.lordofthedance3d.com.