Not just another dance recital

If you enjoy Celtic dance, you appreciate Broadway musicals, and you fancy the music of the Swedish folk/pop band ABBA, you probably won't want to miss the Jan. 22 and 23 production of "Celtic Spirit Dancers: A Musical of Dreams."

Dance instructor Sara Sheehan wrote the original script for the production, as a cost efficient alternative to purchasing the rights to the popular "Mamma Mia" Hollywood film tribute to ABBA, released last year.

"It would have cost us thousands of dollars. We didn't have that in our budget so I came up with this idea and the girls liked it and I started writing the script last Easter," said Ms. Sheehan

Once that end was complete, training of the dancers and actors was necessary.

As the production evolved so did Ms. Sheehan's vision for the project.

"We were going to do some songs with just one guitar but that kind of evolved into a full band with somebody on bass, drums, guitar," said Ms. Sheehan. "As we started practicing and seeing how close this was to Broadway and theatre we didn't want to lose the quality, so we added the band. Also my vocalists were strictly the actors but then we put the band in and had only one or two singers and we weren't getting the energy and the volume so we added a chorus group."

In the end, 10 more people were added to the show's cast to support Ms. Sheehan's goal of putting together a quality production Broadway stage-worthy.

"I want the show to be high quality and as much of a taste of Broadway for the community as possible and once we started we realized what we needed to give it that quality."

The dancers have been rehearsing four out of seven days each week since September for the production and Ms. Sheehan said everyone has been working extremely hard. The tireless instructor took a brief break from rehearsals to travel to Houston, Texas, last month to receive accreditation in her craft.

The performers are putting in a lot of work as well.

"I've got 12 dancers who are doing six ABBA tunes besides their Irish dance so I have been teaching jazz, salsa and foxtrot to go with the ABBA," she said. "It's been a lot of work. Then there are the scene rehearsals and all of the costumes, which except for a couple I've made myself."

Ms. Sheehan said the cast and crew are progressing towards the next step before the actual stage night.

"Before now we have been doing everything separately, so the vocalists have had a separate rehearsals, actors separate scene rehearsals, the dancers have been having separate rehearsals and the Irish dancers have been having separate rehearsals," she said. "Starting January we are going to incorporate them all and bring it all together."

She hopes that all her hard work and that of the dancers and people who worked on the sidelines on the production create a show that will entertain the audience.

"It's an original musical which tells a story through the music of ABBA," said Ms. Sheehan. "It is basically the relationship between three women, a mother and her two daughters, who embark on an adventure to Ireland. The kids, three- to six-years-old are the Irish dancers out in the streets of Dublin. That is the first thing the daughters will encounter."

Rehearsals resume for the group after the Christmas holiday, on Jan. 7. The production will be staged January at the Gordon Pinsent Centre for the Arts. You can book your ticket at the box office or by calling 292-4520.