Dance Master is an intimate portrait of Irish dancer and choreographer Breandán de Gallaí, whose work sits at the intersection of tradition and transformation. Filmed over the course of a year, the film follows de Gallaí as he practices, performs, and reflects on a career that began within the rigid structures of competitive Irish dance and moved through the global phenomenon of Riverdance, before arriving at a more questioning, exploratory phase of his artistic life. As both performer and scholar, he considers how Irish dance has changed - and how he has changed with it - probing issues of identity, memory, and belonging. Through archive material and new work created for stage and screen, including a deeply personal piece made in memory of his late partner, the film traces the journey of an artist reckoning with the rules he once upheld and the freedom found in reimagining them.
The Festival welcomes Breandán de Gallaí, Anne Stirling, and Mark Howard
