Norris was born in Kilmacthomas, County Waterford, Ireland on 29 December 1978 to Mary Norris and Desmond Norris, a carpenter and well-known tenor. Norris is the youngest of five children. She started dancing at the age 10, when her parents signed her up for dance lessons at the Higgins School of Irish Dance in Waterford. She later won the All-Ireland, Great Britain, and British National titles and placed 3rd at the World Championships.
Norris debuted as a professional dancer when she played "Morrighan, The Temptress" in Michael Flatley's show, Lord of the Dance. Gillian danced with the show from its premiere in July 1996 at the Point Theater in Dublin until her departure in 2000. Gillian toured the world with the show. Her rendition of Morrighan has been featured in two videos: The original video and the 1998 Feet of Flames video (taped live in Hyde Park, London).
When the show began in 1996, she danced with Michael Flatley in the original show for a year, and then in late 1997 joined the second touring company (Troupe 2) in the United States. In July 1998, she returned to Troupe 1 and danced the lead in Feet of Flames in Hyde Park. She remained with Troupe 1 and toured Europe until she left the show in 2000.
After Gillian left the show, she returned to Ireland and briefly pursued a modeling and singing career. In summer 2001, she briefly danced in the show Ragus in Dublin. She then enrolled in beauty therapy school, where she was a top student. In June 2005, she opened her own beauty salon/spa in Kilmacthomas.
Gillian says about performing, "To me, no matter if there's two people I'm performing to or 20,000 people, I'd perform the same way. I go out to make those happy; they deserve that, they're paying to see me dance and that's what I do; I go out and do my job."
The Ragus Experience (by James Stevens) James met Norris and wrote of his experience seeing her dance in Ragus in 2001. Includes some RealPlayer videos of Norris dancing.
Michael Ryan Flatley is an Irish-American dancer. He became known for creating and performing in Irish dance shows Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Feet of Flames, Celtic Tiger Live and Michael Flatley's Christmas Dance Spectacular. Flatley's shows have played to more than 60 million people in 60 countries and have grossed more than $1 billion. His career also includes work as an actor, writer, director, producer, and philanthropist.
Riverdance is a theatrical show that consists mainly of traditional Irish music and dance. With a score composed by Bill Whelan, it originated as an interval act during the Eurovision Song Contest 1994, featuring Irish dancing champions Jean Butler, Michael Flatley and the vocal ensemble Anúna. Shortly afterwards, husband and wife production team John McColgan and Moya Doherty expanded it into a stage show, which opened in Dublin on 9 February 1995. Since then, the show has visited over 450 venues worldwide and been seen by over 25 million people, making it one of the most successful dance productions in the world.
Dame Arlene Phillips is an English choreographer, talent scout, television judge and presenter, theatre director, and former dancer, who has worked in many fields of entertainment.
Bernadette Mary Flynn is an Irish dancer best known for her work in Lord of the Dance and Feet of Flames.
Anna Maria Manahan was an Irish stage, film and television actress.
Jean Butler is an American stepdancer, Irish dancer, choreographer, and actress. She is best known for originating the principal female role in the Irish dance theatrical production Riverdance. In January 2020 it was announced she is a member of the Irish America Hall of Fame, an honor presented by Irish America magazine.
Celtic Tiger Live or more often known Michael Flatley's Celtic Tiger or just Celtic Tiger was an Irish dance show.
Feet of Flames is an Irish dance show directed by Michael Flatley and scored by Ronan Hardiman. Flatley was known for the shows Riverdance and Lord of the Dance.
The Point Theatre (sometimes referred to as the Point Depot or simply as the Point) was a concert and events venue in Dublin, Ireland, that operated from 1988 to 2007, visited by in excess of 2 million people. It was located on the North Wall Quay of the River Liffey, amongst the Dublin Docklands. The Point was closed in the middle of 2007 for a major redevelopment and underwent a rebranding as The O2 in July 2008.
Lord of the Dance is an Irish musical and dance production that was created, choreographed, and produced by Irish-American dancer Michael Flatley, who also took a starring role. The music for the show was written by Ronan Hardiman.
Kilmacthomas or Kilmactomas, often referred to locally as "Kilmac", is a town on the River Mahon in County Waterford, Ireland. It lies on the R677, a road north of the N25 national primary road from Dungarvan to Waterford.
Ronan Hardiman is an Irish composer, famous for his soundtracks to Michael Flatley's dance shows Lord of the Dance, Feet of Flames and Celtic Tiger Live.
Deirdre Gilsenan is an Irish singer who has toured with a variety of Celtic music groups, such as Anúna, Celtic Thunder and Celtic Woman. She is better known by the stage name Deirdre Shannon.
Máiréad Nesbitt is an Irish musician. She is known for performing Celtic and classical music and being the former fiddler for Celtic Woman. She was also one of the two original fiddlers in Michael Flatley’s Lord of the Dance in the mid to late 1990s, along with its extended version Feet of Flames in the early 2000s.
Daire Nolan is an Irish dancer and choreographer best known for his work in Lord of the Dance and Feet of Flames.
The Mercedes-Benz Arena is a multipurpose indoor arena in the Friedrichshain neighborhood of Berlin, Germany, which opened in 2008.
Morleigh Steinberg is an American choreographer and dancer with the production company Arcane Collective. She is married to the musician the Edge from the rock group U2.
Róisín Mullins is a TV presenter, TV talent show judge, professional Irish dancer, singer, stage show owner and choreographer.
Alice Upcott is a retired British female acrobatic gymnast and the sister of Edward Upcott, world champion in 2010. With Dominic Smith, she was awarded the gold medal in the 2013 World Games, the gold medal at the 2013 Acrobatic Gymnastics European Championships and the silver medal in the 2014 Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships.
Joanne Doyle is a former professional Irish dancer who is most famous for her lead role in Riverdance. In her 10 years with Riverdance, Doyle became the longest-serving lead in the show's history and danced in over 2,500 performances.
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