Let's Dance Irish!

Do you want to discover Irish Dance? Would you like to learn how to dance it? Then, join our blog and all the secrets of this deeply felt popular tradition will be revealed to you.

Bernadette Flynn

Bernadette Flynn is a famous irish dancer. She is the possessor of six world titles and seven All-Ireland titles. In 1996, she came in first in the World Irish Dancing championships, and joined Michael Flately and Lord of the Dance shortly thereafter, playing the role of Saorise (Gaelic for "freedom"). The show opened on July 2, 1996 to critical acclaim and commercial success. 

A famous well-known dance practiced all over the world

Over eighty million people in the world claim to have Irish heritage. So it’s no wonder that Irish dancing, the traditional dance form of Ireland, is so popular, not just amongst Irish communities scattered across the continents, but in countries as far afield as Japan, Brazil, Argentina, South Africa and in at an ever growing rate in Eastern Europe.

Coimisiún le Rincí Gaelacha, is the organisation first conceived as a Commission of Enquiry in the late twenties, and established as an authority in 1930 to promote and foster all forms of Irish dance

The History of Irish Dance

abstract from Irelandseye.com

The Anglo-Norman conquest in the twelfth century brought Norman customs and culture to Ireland. The Carol was a popular Norman dance in which the leader sang and was surrounded by a circle of dancers who replied with the same song. This Norman dance was performed in conquered Irish towns.

Three principal Irish dances are mentioned often in sixteenth century writing: the Irish Hey, the Rinnce Fada (long dance) and the Trenchmore. One of the first references to dance is in a letter written by Sir Henry Sydney to Queen Elizabeth I in 1569. "They are very beautiful, magnificently dressed and first class dancers," Sydney wrote of the girls he saw dancing enthusiastic Irish jigs in Galway.

During the mid sixteenth century, dances were performed in the great halls of the newly built castles. Some of the dances were adapted by the sixteenth century English invaders and brought to the court of Queen Elizabeth. One of these dances was the Trenchmore, which was an adaptation of an old Irish peasant dance. From this period onward another style of dance called the Hey was popular where female dancers wound in around their partners, in a fore-runner of the present day reel.

Irish dancing was accompanied by music played on the bagpipes and the harp. In the houses of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy, the master often joined with servants in some of the dances. Dancing was also performed during wakes. The mourners followed each other in a ring around the coffin to bagpipe music.

The Irish Dance Master

During the eighteenth century, the dancing master appeared in Ireland. He was a wandering dancing teacher who travelled from village to village in a district, teaching dance to peasants. Dancing masters were flamboyant characters who wore bright clothes and carried staffs. Their young pupils did not know the difference between their left and right feet. To overcome this problem, the dancing master would tie straw or hay to his pupils' left or right feet and instruct them to "lift hay foot" or "lift straw foot".

Group dances were developed by the masters to hold the interest of their less gifted pupils and to give them the chance to enjoy dancing. Each dancing master had his own district and never encroached on another master's territory. It was not unknown for a dancing master to be kidnapped by the residents of a neighbouring parish.

When dancing masters met at fairs, they challenged each other to a public dancing contest that only ended when one of them dropped with fatigue.

Solo dancing or step dancing first appeared at the end of the eighteenth century.

The costumes worn by Irish dancers today commemorate the clothing of the past. Each school of dancing has its own distinct dancing costume. Dresses are based on the Irish peasant dress worn two hundred years ago. Most of the dresses are adorned with hand-embroidered Celtic designs, copies of the Tara brooch are often worn on the shoulder. The brooch hold a cape which falls over the back.

The clothes worn by men are less embellished but steeped in history- they wear a plain kilt and jacket, with a folded cloak draped from the shoulder. Male and female dancers today wear hornpipe shoes, and for reels and jigs, soft shoes similar to ballet pumps are worn.

Today there are many organisations promoting Irish dance. The Feis has been an important part of rural cultural life. Children, teenagers and adults compete in separate competitions for Feis titles and prizes. There are group and solo competitions where dancers are graded by age from six to seventeen and then into the senior categories.

There are dancing championships in all four provinces, and winners of these provincial competitions qualify for the All Ireland Championships. The World Championships are held in Dublin at Easter where dancers from England, Ireland, USA, Canada, Australia and New Zealand compete for the World title.

The world-wide success of Riverdance and more recently Lord of the Dance has placed Irish dance on the international stage. Dancing schools in Ireland today are filled with young pupils keen to imitate and learn the dancing styles which brought Jean Butler and Michael Flatley international acclaim.

Each dance tradition needs its proper shoes! Irish dance is no exception to the rule. Take a look at the shoes you need to wear to start feeling a real Irish dancer!

Jig shoes	Irish Dance Pumps
Jig shoes can also called heavy shoes, hard shoes, treble shoes and even Riverdance shoes.	Irish Dance Pumps, are also called Irish dance ghillies, Irish dance soft shoes or even Irish dancing light shoes.

Boys reel shoes
Boys reel shoes are used..