Flamingo dance show moves beyond 16th century Irish/Spanish clash

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The Celts slaughtered the Spanish when they first met in 1588.

Hopefully, the outcome won’t be quite as bloody when they meet in 2011 in "Battle of the Dance" at the Flamingo Las Vegas.

Instead of nooses and knives, their weapons will be feet. And instead of an actual re-enactment involving modern-day Spaniards and the Irish, it will be an artistic showdown between the forms of dance that best represent those cultures. Think flamenco, tango and Irish jigs.

"We feel that the style of our show really hasn’t been seen on a Las Vegas stage in, perhaps, forever," says Jack Rein, artistic director of "Battle of the Dance."

He’s probably right. While we’ve certainly seen our share of Irish step-dancing and flamenco in Las Vegas, how many times have we seen a staged depiction of the destruction of the Spanish Armada and the slaughter of its remaining sailors?

The show, which features 30 dancers, opens in 1588 with that fateful Irish/Spanish meeting. While fleeing the English Navy and the wrath of Queen Elizabeth I, about 20 ships from the Spanish Armada tried to navigate the waters around Ireland. Fierce storms sank or crashed their ships and the survivors swam to shore. On Ireland. Some were hanged by Celtic villagers while others found shelter.

A video presentation will show a stylized version of that first meeting on the beach, Rein says.

"It didn’t go very well for the Spaniards," Rein says. "Many of them were killed, but some lived on and were able to influence the Irish and their dance."

"Battle of the Dance" opens with a bang, but then things really pick up. A voiceover brings the audience up to speed before the next act, a Spanish ballet, 19th-century style.

"It’s a really exciting show from start to finish," says Maile Leonard, dance captain and choreographer for the Irish dancers in the show. "There’s really no low point in the show. We hit the ground running, and it just goes up and up. Then it culminates in a battle between the two groups."

A similar show has been playing in Majorca, Spain, for several years. The producer of that show worked with Rein to bring it to the United States, opening a "Battle of the Dance" dinner show in Anaheim, Calif., earlier this year.

It’s certainly not a historical dance revue, and audiences don’t need to know the history behind "Battle of the Dance" to enjoy it, says Rein, a history buff who just published his second novel, this one about the Renaissance.

But the historical aspect serves as a touchstone throughout the show, Rein says, and foreshadows the last number: the Spanish-Irish showdown.

Rein thinks it will leave people on the edge of their seats.

Who wins this time? That, Leonard says, is up to the audience.

"Battle of the Dance" runs through Jan.15. Tickets start at $35.99 and can be purchased through the Flamingo box office, 733-3333, or online at flamingolasvegas.com.

Contact reporter Sonya Padgett at spadgett@review journal.com or 702-380-4564. Follow @StripSonya on Twitter.