CNN —
Michael Flatley, the creator and star of the hit show Riverdance, has been diagnosed with an “aggressive form of cancer,” according to an announcement on his official Instagram account on Wednesday.
The post revealed that the 64-year-old “has had surgery and is being cared for by an excellent team of doctors.”
“No further comments will be made at this time. We only ask for your prayers and well wishes,” the post added.
Accompanying the caption was a black and white photo of the dancer standing on a beach looking out to sea.
In 2021, Flatley revealed to the Sunday Independent details of a previous skin cancer diagnosis in 2003.
“It was purely coincidental that it was noticed,” he told the newspaper at the time, adding that the melanoma was fully treated and left no side effects.
Born in Chicago to Irish parents, the dancer rose to fame after the 1994 Eurovision Song Contest, when his seven-minute “Riverdance” performance during the show’s intermission wowed audiences and popularized Irish dancing around the world.
The performance was adapted into a full-length show, which opened at Dublin’s Point Theater in February 1995. But after a falling out with the show’s producers, Flatley was fired in October 1995.
He went on to create Lord of the Dance. The show broke box office records around the world, including in London, where it set a record streak of 21 consecutive shows at Wembley Arena, according to Flatley’s website.
His dance troupe performed at the inauguration of former US President Donald Trump in 2017, and he told the Irish Independent that despite criticism it was a “great honour”.
A Lord of the Dance tour was launched last year to celebrate his 25th anniversary.