LOTD25: Warriors (featuring Connor Smyth)

Connor Smyth could reasonably lay claim to the title of the toughest dancer on Planet Earth right now.
We're not joking. In his spare time between tours, he appeared as a contestant on SAS: Who Dares Wins -- and won.
There's no faking what happened on that show. In a now-viral tweet, Helen Gradwell wrote, "An Irish dancer has just effortlessly breezed his way through a heinous programme of physical and psychological torture on SAS Who Dares Wins and I'm just sat here thinking... what on EARTH do they put them through at Irish dancing school"
The discipline is no joke. The physical fitness is no joke. The sacrifice is real. The pain is real. This is doubly true for Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance: you're either committed to being the tip of the spear, the absolute last word in hardcore Irish dancing, or you're out. That's what the audience pays to see when they watch Team Lord: the greatest in the world walking the talk live in front of their eyes.
It was only a matter of time before Connor Smyth became a lead dancer. And, on the inaugural tour of Lord of the Dance's 25th anniversary show, 25 YEARS OF STANDING OVATIONS, it happened: Connor Smyth made his debut in the UK as the newest Dark Lord.
Every single dancer who's ever played the Dark Lord has their own interpretation. Zoltan Papp is pure bugnuts insanity, like Kefka from Final Fantasy VI, more a force of nature than a person. Alasdair Spencer is a deranged psychopath. Declan Durning is "Anarchy in the UK" brought to life as a street brawler hopped up on Jagerbombs and looking for a scrap.
And Connor Smyth?
Connor Smyth is power.
In a way, Connor Smyth's got the perfect backstory to be the bad guy. In real life, Connor is the friendly and ultra-positive unassuming guy at the pub who drinks beer and talks about football, almost making you forget that last night he was abseiling off an oil rig in the North Sea and bench-pressing your mom's car. Onstage, though, you see the full coiled-spring power unleashed: here's an Irish dancer who can extract hostages, survive chemical warfare, literally endure torture, navigate hostile terrain at night while being pursued by dogs, has so much testosterone that he can grow a full beard in the span of a commercial break, and was told point-blank by Ant Middleton that he'd have him on his fireteam. How in the hell is anyone supposed to beat him?
The greater the villain, the greater the story. So here, now, get your first look at Connor Smyth as Don Dorcha, the Dark Lord, in Michael Flatley's Lord of the Dance.
#LordOfTheDance #IrishDance #IrishDancing #SASwhodareswins #UKtour

[@birgitnecke2016]

Bravo Connor Smyth 👍 Excellent 👏👏👏👏👏Hope to see you live in October in Leipzig 😀

[@BobHogan]

All of the above, This man is a pure gent. We have been so privileged to have seen, met and spoken with him., and witnessed him perform this.

[@karendagostino1953]

Amazing performance. I give you a standing ovation 👏 and I’m at home.

[@magdaenea9211]

Superb ! Felicitări !

[@polixeniagraf2636]

Thank you very much !🙂👏👏👏

[@KimiF17954]

Always love warriors, great performance. Like the costumes.

[@lidiabarote7565]

FELICITARI!

[@marthagogele9044]

👍👍👍

[@aidaginajiman5745]

🥰🥰🥰

[@damejeannemoi]

👏👏👏👏👏👏👏👏🤩🤩🤩🤩

[@amandaphipps1030]

I loved seeing Connor at southend is so amazing at the part of the dark lord is a true legend alongside zoltan and Alastair .xx

[@cyberhawk99]

I completely agree with the above statement about the villain. I rate action movies the same way. Also, how a bad guy meets his fate is the other criteria.