Lord of the Dance star on returning home to perform in Cork Opera House

For Monaghan, getting to dance as part of the LOTD cast has been a goal for her for as long as she can remember, a gig she describes as “the show you always want to get into” and “one of those things that I always felt like I was going to do”.

Gillian Monaghan, star of Lord of the Dance which will open at the Cork Opera House on August 9. Pic: Dan Linehan

Even to the untrained eye, it’s easy to pick a professional dancer out of a lineup.

There’s an elegance about a dancer; they sit with perfect posture and when they walk, it’s almost as if they are floating.