Choreography

Michael Keegan-Dolan

Michael Keegan-Dolan was born in Dublin and studied at the Performing Arts School there and at the Central School of Ballet in London. In 1997, he founded the »Fabulous Beast Dance Theatre«, which he also directed until 2015. With this company, he developed choreographies such as »Sunday Lunch« (1997), »Fragile« (1999), »The Flowerbed« (2000), »The Christmas Show« (2001), »James Son of James« (2007) and »Helen and Hell« (2010). His work also includes productions of »Ariodante«, »Manon« and »Alcina« at the English National Opera, »The Rake’s Progress« at the La Monnaie opera house in Brussels, »Faust« and »Macbeth« at the Royal Opera House Covent Garden in London, »Idomeneo« at the Vlaamse Opera Ghent/Antwerp, »Die Liebe zu den drei Orangen« at Cologne Opera and »Pique Dame« and »Ariodante« at the Bayerische Staatsoper in Munich. In 2004 and 2008, his choreography of »Giselle« was awarded the Special Jury Prize in the »Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards«.

In 2008, Michael Keegan-Dolan received a prize from the British Critics’ Circle in the category »Best Modern Choreography« for »The Bull«. In addition, his works »Giselle«, »The Bull« and »Le sacre du printemps« have been nominated for the »Laurence Olivier Award«. In 2009, he was nominated for the »Europe Prize New Theatrical Realities«. In 2012, Michael Keegan-Dolan and the author Enda Walsh were honoured with the Meadows Prize of the Meadows School of the Arts at the Southern Methodist University (Dallas, Texas). In 2013, his choreographies for Stravinsky's ballets »Le sacre du printemps« and »Petruschka« were featured at London's Sadler’s Wells Theatre.

In a coproduction between Sadler’s Wells Theatre and the Coulours Dance Festival Stuttgart, the Theatre de la Ville Luxembourg and the Dublin Theatre Festival, he created the choreography for Tchaikovsky's »Schwanensee«. In 2016, Michael Keegan-Dolan founded the »Teac Damsa« dance company. He is also an Associate Artist at Sadler’s Wells Theatre in London. In 2017, his choreography for »Swan Lake/Loch na hEala« was named the Best Production in the »Irish Times Irish Theatre Awards«.