Dancing priests become Internet sensation

October 24, 2014 02:50 am | Updated May 23, 2016 06:58 pm IST - Rome

Rev. David Rider (left) and Rev. John Gibson dance at the Pontifical North American College in Rome earlier in the month.

Rev. David Rider (left) and Rev. John Gibson dance at the Pontifical North American College in Rome earlier in the month.

A video of a pair of duelling, dancing American priests studying in Rome has gone viral, following the footsteps of a now-famous Italian nunwhose Alicia Keyes-esque voice won her a singing contest and a record contract. The Rev. David Rider (29) of New York, and the Rev. John Gibson (28) of Milwaukee, first shot to Internet fame when they were filmed in April during a fundraiser at the North American College, the elite American seminary up the hill from the Vatican.

Rev. Rider warmed up the crowd with a lively tap-dance routine, only to be pushed aside by Rev. Gibson’s fast-footed Irish dance.

At the back of the room, journalist Joan Lewis recorded the event and later posted on YouTube.

“All of a sudden the numbers started rising and rising,” Ms. Lewis told The Associated Press . The video has nearly 260,000 views.

Their Internet success has drawn comparisons to Sr. Cristina Scuccia, who won the Italian edition of The Voice in June with a series of unadorned pop song performances, in full habit. Her first album features a cover of Madonna’s Like a Virgin .

As with Sr. Scuccia, the priests’ online popularity was tinged with criticism. Some commentators wrote that the priests shouldn’t have been dancing under a crucifix and a painting of Pope Francis, calling it "disrespectful". “We would just refer them to the Bible,” Rev. Rider says, “where the Lord tells us to live with joy.”

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.