Just Dance: Riverdance's Final Shows

I did something a bit different for St. Patrick's Day this year. Instead of going out with friends all day, I went to see one of Riverdance's final shows at Radio City Music Hall. I was unsure of my choice at first-while all my friends were out, I would be sitting in a crowded theater hall with a bunch of random people by myself (I only had one ticket). But I had always wanted to see Riverdance and this was my only chance. And I'm so glad that I saw it.

Radio City Music Hall was packed with people, from young girls dressed in their own Irish step outfits to people fresh from the St. Paddy's Day parade. Needless to say, green was everywhere.

The show was amazing. I knew of the famous dance sequence from watching it in my Introduction to Celtic Music class through the Irish Studies department at NYU. Nothing compares to seeing it live. Since this was the opening night, the audience was excited and so was the cast. Their excitement was evident and brought the crowd to their feet. My favorite numbers were thunderstorm, riverdance, and trading taps. If you can somehow find trading taps on youtube, it will absolutely amaze you!

Yet nothing beats the dancing. Some of the dances incorporated the dancing techniques from other countries, including a flamenco dancer and Russian acrobats (anyone who has seen the show can probably describe this with a bit more artistry than I can), but each routine evolved into the typical Irish step dance.

While I know that people are upset that this is their farewell tour, all I can say is that they saved the best for last. It is truly an unforgettable experience!

Irish Irish Everywhere

With six days left before St. Paddy's day, it seems some people have decided to start celebrating early. And I'm not talking about all those crazy (i.e. incredibly smart and lucky) people who have started off the holiday season with pub crawls in various cities last Saturday. Tonight's episode of The Office featured a hilarious homage to St. Paddy's day including Irish accents, green outfits, a kilt, and an Irish jig. Enjoy!

The Script: A bright spot on a snowy day:

It is snowing in New York City. And not the nice pretty snow but the wet, slushy, cold snow. This weather can make for a long day at the office. But one thing that has definitely helped the day pass by is my recent discovery of the band The Script. They are so great! I know I might be a bit behind when it comes to music discoveries but I plan on going home and downloading all their music, especially Breakeven, which when I played it caused one of my coworkers to shout "Oh my god is that the Script? I love them!". Check them out now or if you are already a big the Script fan, let me know your favorite songs so I can listen!

When Zoroastrian Eyes are Smiling ...

Without fail, every times I tell someone where I work and what I do I get the a variation of the same question. "An Irish magazine? Well at least you're working and getting experience"; "How did you end up at an Irish magazine"; and the ultimate "but you're not Irish...".

It's true. I'm not Irish, not even a little bit. I'm 100% Indian, technically Persian if you go back a couple dozen centuries. I'm not Christian, although I celebrate Christmas like its going out of style. I'm Zoroastrian, which is actually the first monotheistic religion upon which Christianity and Judaism were built. And perhaps most damaging of all, my mum was born and raised in London, England. And with my duel citizenship that makes me British.

And yet here I am. With all this working against me (as some might say), I love everything Irish. I have no idea where this love came from. Maybe it came from spending summers and vacations in London and having my cousins take me out to an Irish pub for my first real pint when I was 15 (although technically it was a half-pint and it was shandy but the meaning is the same). Or perhaps it was the Irish presence in one of my favorite books, A Tree Grows in Brookyln, about a young Irish girl growing up in, you guessed it, Brooklyn, that sparked my interest. Or even later, when I was 16, visiting Ireland, searching for the statue of Molly Malone in Dublin.

I don't really think it was one life-changing event. More a culmination of all the forces in the universe coming together to create my Irish obsession (yes I know this sounds very dramatic).

I've decided in my next few blog posts to talk about my rather humorous introduction to the Irish world. All I can say is that my birthday is February 1st, which happens to be St. Brigid's day. If that's not fate I don't know what is.

To be continued ...

O'Brien, Stewart, Colbert: Clash of the comedy titans

An oldie but a goodie (as someone incredibly old would say). I had seen this when it first aired and had forgotten about it until this morning when I was trying to think of a blog post. The 'epic' battle between Conan O'Brien, John Stewart, and Stephen Colbert over who created Mike Huckabee is a bit silly but the three comedic geniuses fighting for their claim to the title is a great laugh.

The Conan O'Brien jig

It started with a hoot of laughter. The morning so far had been
relatively quiet -the daily greetings, the questions about the previous
nights activities, the general office banter. And then we heard the
hoot. Make that plural, the hoots of laughter emitting from Niall
O'Dowd's office. Laughter in our office isn't that unusual, but this
was different. Something incredibly funny was being watched. I craned
my neck to see what it was and caught a glimpse of pale legs
gesticulating wildly.

Niall came out of his office, still laughing, and said something to
the effect of "Conan O'Brien was dancing a jig with Robin Williams."
All my brain heard was Conan and jig. Immediately Amy and I googled
and hulued and youtubed. We couldn't find it until Niall, wanting to
watch it again, directed us to the correct place.

It was hands down one of the funniest things I've ever seen. As my
readers now know, I love Conan. I also love Irish dance. The
combination of the two is basically the best thing in the world. Throw
in Robin Williams and you've got the Trifecta.

It started and ended with a laugh. In fact it hasn't ended yet as I'm
onto my second viewing.

Before you run to watch the video, make sure you check out Irish
America magazine online through Irish Central. We've got some great
articles up right now that you don't want to miss.

Video / See Conan and Robin's Irish jig / Click here

I'll follow my 'Irish boyfriend' Conan O'Brien anywhere

Conan O’Brien seems to be everywhere this week. From the New York Times to the gossip rags to our very own Irishcentral.com, Conan’s uncertain fate is being discussed. After the initial shock of hearing that television funny Irishman might be shunted around (tears welled up in my eyes), I began to search newspapers, magazines, and the Internet for any Conan news. I might even go so far as to call that period of time Conan-watch. Eventually all the news became confusing and disheartening. Would he stay or would he go? Did he have a choice? Would the tall redhead be overtaken by that other guy with the big chin? His fate was in peril. My devotion however, remained steadfast.

Ever since Conan took over the Tonight Show in June, I’ve followed him with the dedication of a crazed fan. As much as I loved Late Night, it was just too late for me to fully enjoy all that Conan had to offer. I often fell asleep before Conan jumped his way onto stage. But come June, everything changed. I began to spend my free nights with the guy I referred to in passing as my new Irish boyfriend. He was dependable. He was never late, was always up for a good laugh, and on the rare nights when he looked less than stellar (his hair has a mind of its own) there was always a cute friend (guest) to watch.

With all that has been going on this past week in Conan’s life and with his recent statement that he will not host Late Night after Leno’s new gig, I’ve chosen to go back to the basics. I’ve been watching funny new clips and classic old interviews. In need of a good laugh? Check out my personal favorite: Conan’s interview with Julia Louis-Dreyfus, who just happened to be his first female guest (he refers to her rather awkwardly as ‘his laaady’). And most recently, his interview with Aziz Ansari of NBC’s Parks and Recreation. I’ve been forcing friends to watch it and after they forgive me for forcing them to do something, they laugh so hard they almost cry (some of the tears are of course residual tears from being chained to their computer screen).

Conan’s job status may be in question but for devoted fans like myself, that doesn’t really matter. Whenever and wherever he goes, I will keep watching. Because I love that crazy redheaded guy.