With St. Patrick's Day celebrations and dance-outs on the calendar of every Irish dance school in North America, it's hard to think ahead to the end of March and the start of the World Irish Dancing Championships.
In between all of the parades, parties and visits to schools and nursing homes, the best Irish dancers and teams in the world are training and polishing steps which will be executed on the World's stages in Belfast, Northern Ireland starting March 31st.
In 2011, 28 North American teams placed in 10 events at the Oireachtas Rince na Cruinne (World Irish Dancing Championships) held in Dublin, Ireland. Four teams from three regions clinched coveted World Championship titles: Trinity (Middle America) for Minor Girls Figure under 13, Watters (Southern) for Senior Dance Drama and Celtic Steps (Western U.S.) for both the Senior Ladies Figure and Senior Mixed Figure competitions.
One of the marquee competitions of the Championships is the Senior Girls Figure competition, which features teams performing intricately choreographed routines that would make any Broadway producer proud.
Celtic Steps performed "The Salmon of Knowledge" and their stellar performance beat out teams from Ireland, Scotland, England, Australia and Norway to bring the coveted title to Colorado. The Senior Mixed Figure Team win confirmed Celtic Steps as the only Irish dance school in the world which has won two figure World Championship titles.
Teams from Broesler, Burke, Cashel-Dennehy, Celtic Steps, Claddagh, Clarkson, Cleary, Harney, Johnston, Maple, Marie Moore, McDade-Cara, Trinity and Watters made North American fans of Irish dancing and culture proud with a total of 21 Top Ten placements. Burke, Celtic Steps, Clarkson, Cleary, and Maple teams also recalled and placed overall in three events. All teams that placed were from the United States of America.
In anticipation of our coverage of the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championships starting next weekend, we now bring you recaps, interviews and hedge some bets about who will bring home the gold from Belfast! Stay tuned and check back often for everything Irish dance here on Irish Central.
11 Comments
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Switch to the desktop site to post a comment.howareya | Mar 29, 2012, 11:31 AM EDT
Hey Vicky! I danced in the late 50's and on. And yes, we wore green costumes with celtic designs embroidered on. No wigs or wierd colors! The emphasis should be on the dance not the costumes. I think the idea is now to attract the judges attention...no matter how glitzy you have to be. And it is not the Riverdance style...that is actually very plain. They started to go in that direction after Riverdance came out but it got a little low cut so the judges put an end to it. Very easy solution to these garish costumes and wigs...just have the Irish Dance Commission have some guidelines. But obviously they like the way it is!
Searlit | Mar 28, 2012, 06:30 PM EDT
They should be fair and make the boy dancers where wigs too. They're awful!
padraiginrua | Mar 27, 2012, 01:08 PM EDT
The hideous wigs and ridiculous costumes started at least 25 years ago so they can't be blamed on Gaga and her ilk. But they do take away from the dance itself and make the dancers look like fools.
joan1954 | Mar 27, 2012, 08:38 AM EDT
Actually Murph 46 Innishfree Irish Dancers were at our River Parade program at the Arneson River Theater and later at the Hooley. We had the River Parade just not the Street.
Micky | Mar 26, 2012, 11:58 PM EDT
Its not Micky its Vicki.... i danced in Dublin in the '50's and the costumes were plain green with gold(orange) shawl and celtic pin.. that's all you needed it was the "dance" not the funky hair, very expensive costumes and make-up on young kids... Get back to Irish dancing as it should be.. not a take off on"riverdance" So there!!!
Searlit | Mar 24, 2012, 11:21 AM EDT
Down with the wigs!
CitizenWhy | Mar 24, 2012, 11:07 AM EDT
I wonder if the Afro-American-Jewish boy from Ohio will win again. That's America at its best!
Murph46 | Mar 23, 2012, 06:19 PM EDT
joan1954 did they miss the parade-Oh ,that's right there was none!
joan1954 | Mar 23, 2012, 05:32 PM EDT
16 dancers from Texas qualified for the All World and 7 of them are from San Antonio. Congrats to all the qualifiers.
IrishHeartDance | Mar 23, 2012, 12:12 PM EDT
Congratulations AGAIN to Celtic Steps, Trinity and Watters on making North America proud at the 2011 World Irish Dancing Championships! Looking forward to the coverage of this year's events!
hermitTalker | Mar 23, 2012, 12:09 PM EDT
I agree that the emphasis should be on the dance, as bythebay notes here, but today's narcissistic culture driven by Gaga and her ilk makes it all about "look at my skin" or the beef hanging on her, and hair of course.