Go Feis - The Irish Dance Blog









by PATRICIA MCNAMARA,

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA,





Oireachtas season is well underway. The time when hours of practice gets put to the test in mere minutes. The stakes are high and the energy is soaring.

As Irish dancers, we all strive for success. But the definition of success differs between individuals. With every Oireachtas, however, there are two main goals all competitors try to clinch: A recall…and a qualification to compete overseas at the World Irish Dancing Championships.

But what’s the difference between an Oireachtas Recall and a World Qualification? We had our Feis America fans come up with this fabulous list…

by CAITLIN BUCK, I was a senior on my high school dance team when I started Irish dancing. I came from a background of a megaphone-wielding director who would belt out our names across the gym as we practiced our routines. I don’t know how many times I heard, “Caitlin, smile!!!”

A smile, like a solo dress, can set dancers apart. A smile full of joy can light up the stage and energize the air around you. A smile can make a dancer stand up a little straighter, lift their chin a bit higher, and project an air of “the IT factor.” Draw the audience in and capture the attention of the judge the minute you place those ghillies on the stage by showing off those pearly whites.

Smiling as you dance comes naturally for some, but others like me must practice their dance steps smiling. If you lack a megaphone-wielding director to holler out smiling reminders, just plaster one on your face as you dance in front of a mirror. Practice that smile until it becomes something you do naturally like a well rehearsed step.

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA,

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA, Feis America Magazine contributor

Heading to New Jersey this weekend for the New Jersey State Feis? What about South Carolina for the

by RYAN McCOMBE

It’s Oireachtas season, and for the first time in a decade and a half, I’m not counting down the days until I stress myself out, or trying to push my body to its limit without going overboard. Instead, I’m thinking about all the random things I’ve learned about Irish dancing along the way. The more I think, the more ideas come up about what makes a great dancer. Here are some things I wish I had been told when I was still dancing.

by ERIN CONCANNON, “Ouch” isn’t just a word us Irish dancers feel a lot of the time, it’s an emotion. An emotion that only very few can say they have truly experienced. It’s not the “ouch” part of Irish dancing we love, it’s the “wow” part we all crave. Do you relate to any of these situations below?

Blocking everyone out. To be number one, you have to get into the dance you’re doing. You have to feel as if there is no one else in the room but you and the judge. Many can’t say they have experienced this. But us dancers feel it every time we go out on stage.

Irish Dance Shoes: Out With The Old But How To Break In The New?

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA,