Regional Irish Dancing Championships Funniest Moments

REGIONAL IRISH DANCING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Funniest Memories

With the Mid Atlantic and Middle America Regional Irish Dancing Championships taking place this weekend, the pressure is on for top performances in Philadelphia and Chicago!  To lighten the mood, we asked some of Feis America's Facebook fans to share their funniest memories.


In this video clip of the 2007 Mid Atlantic Regional Oireachtas Parade of Champions, champions Fiona Dargan and Nicholas Paulson are so excited that Fiona forgets to take her turn (1:47) and Nick actually steps back to make room for another dancer and falls off the stage (5:59).  Thankfully no one was hurt and it made for a silly memory!

2009 Mid Atlantic Regional Irish Dancing Champions
photo courtesy Lockie Nidds

In 2009, also at the Mid Atlantic Regional Oireachtas, dance friends Lochlan Nidds and Ian Luebbers got themselves in a bit of trouble.  Says Lockie, "Ian and I found a way to get behind the walls of the practice room in the hotel.  We stood behind the walls scaring our friends as they walked by, and at one point we accidentally blocked the door and couldn't find a way out.  We were stuck behind the walls all day!  Eventually one of our friends who knew we were back there found us and helped us out.  It was funny and scary!"


We look forward to hearing YOUR funny memories from Irish dance! Share with a comment below.


Good luck to everyone competing this weekend and next!


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Atlantic City Feis Irish Dancing Championship Results

Home of Lynn Academy's Atlantic City Feis

photo courtesy Atlantic City Tourism

The folks at the Lynn Academy of Irish Dance with locations in Connecticut, New Jersey and New York know what it takes to run a terrific feis! Each spring, Irish dancers mainly from the Mid-Atlantic and New England regions flock to Stamford, Connecticut for Lynn's Annual Spring Feis. Come summer, however, Lynn's Atlantic City Feis attracts Irish dancers from the Southern region too. This year's Atlantic City Feis was held August 20-21st at the Sheraton Atlantic City and featured a Costume Irish Dancing Exhibition Party on Saturday night, to the delight of feis-goers.

Results were tabulated by expert Alan Schrader of FeisWeb, and championship results are posted here. Congratulations to all the competitors, especially those who placed. Feis America gives out a special chair to those dancers - Bridget Albrades, Gina Carriero, Aine Claire Sheehan, Owen Luebbers, Lachlan Nidds, Nicholas Paulson, Peter Ryan and Colin Vecchiariello -whose perfect performances delighted the adjudicators and won each the Championship in his or her event! Of special note is the three-way first place tie for Open Championship Girls under 10 which was awarded to Sierra Donovan, Farran Dougherty and Kasey Methven. Outstanding!

Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 8
1 Tara Sheehan (McDade-Cara)
2 Darin Douglas Carlin (O'Rourke)
3 Daniel Callanan (Lynn)
4 Meghan Rose Farrell (Hunt)
5 Jacquelynn Hanna (McDade-Cara)
6 Sheila Hulseman (Peter Smith)

Preliminary Boys and Girls under 9

1 Ronan Burke (Shea-Jennings)
2 Mairin Mcdonnell (Cummins)
3 Anna Donovan (O'Rourke)
4 Peyton Davis (McGrath)
5 Sophia Rachel Papados (Culkin)
6 Olivia Boyce (McDade-Cara)
7 Lia Kroll (Mulvihill-Lynch)
8 Abigail Kerensky (Mulvihill-Lynch)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 10
1 Emma Walsh (Marie Moore)
2 Katherine Kivimaki (Boyle)
3 Emily Steege (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
4 Aislinn O'Brien (McDade-Cara)
5 Lenna O'Handley (Ni Fhearraigh-O Ceallaigh)
6 Mary Kate Rider (Shea-Jennings)
7 Kada McGovern (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
8 Kyra Caffrey (Broesler)
9 Mary Kelly (Cummins)
10 Erin Carbaugh (McDade-Cara)
11 T Rachel Delate (McDade-Cara) and Deirdre Kelly (O'Grady-Quinlan)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 11
1 Olivia Crossey (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
2 Erin Rose Miller (O'Grady-Quinlan)
3 Laura McGroary (McDade-Cara)
4 Erin Flynn (McDade-Cara)
5 Meaghan Lynn (Gilleoghan)
6 Alyssa Rothman (Peter Smith)
7 Claire Boyle (McDade-Cara)
8 Julia Eltzholtz (Ardmore)
9 Erin Fitzgerald (Broesler)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 12
1 Mary-kate Bane (Mulvihill-Lynch)
2 Mackenzie Murray (Peter Smith)
3 Kayla McMennamin (Coyle)
4 Megan Dano (O'Grady-Quinlan)
5 Rachel Hughes (McDade-Cara)
6 Nina Hart (O'Grady-Quinlan)
7 Alayna Langan (Lynn)
8 Abigail Kress (Sabo School)
9 Tatijanna Klinkenbergh (Culkin)
10 Shaina Boyce (McDade-Cara)
11 Katelyn Toombs (Broesler)
12 Katie Clauson (Lynn)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 13
1 Nora Burke (O'Grady-Quinlan)
2 Clare Hernon (Shea-Jennings)
3 Erin Doran (Peter Smith)
4 Melissa Sweeney (Lynn)
5 Kathryn Facelle (O'Rourke)
6 Douglas Lyon (O'Rourke)
7 Emily Parry (Peter Smith)
8 Matthew Larson (Culkin)
9 Kathryn Foster (Peter Smith)
10 John Dinelli (Inishfree)
11 Katie Feenan (O'Grady-Quinlan)
12 Haley Finley (DeNogla)
13 Nick Klinkenbergh (Culkin)
14 Sabre Pusey (Boyle)
15 Aleah Jensen (Culkin)
16 Madeline Maloney (Culkin)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 14
1 Faith Ishler (Hooley)
2 Maggie Hall (Broesler)
3 Kara Grzeszczak (Shea-Jennings)
4 Sarah Durso (McAleer)
5 Emma Davis (Boyle)
6 Emma Lisa Senecal (DeNogla)
7 T Fiona Garguilo (Hagen) and Leanne McGroary (McDade-Cara)
8 Sandra Wilson (Verlin)
9 Shannon Svitek (Petri School)
10 Laoise Tyndall (Marie Moore)
11 Megan Shugrue (Donny Golden)
12 Allison Flood (Patricia Murphy)

13 Jessica Sheridan (O'Rourke)

14 Rachel DiMauro (Lynn)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 15
1 Erin Hillegas (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
2 Sheppard Somers (Hagen)
3 Olivia DeScala (Peter Smith)
4 Claire Johnston (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
5 Jacquelynn Fritz (Broesler)
6 Isabel Wasserzug (Culkin)
7 Gaby Toombs (Broesler)
8 Molly Volk (Hunt)
9 Jaclyn Timoney (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
10 Autumn Ramirez (Sabo School)
.
Preliminary Boys and Girls Under 16
1 T Millie Beichner (McAleer) and Emily Murphy (Culkin)
2 Caitlin Romanczyk (Peter Smith)
3 Emma Kennedy (Hurley)
4 Brennen Peters (Boyle)
5 Laurissa Senecal (DeNogla)
6 Kelsey Gallagher (Coyle)
.
Preliminary Men and Ladies 16 & Over
1 Megan Davitt-Loysen (Teelin)
2 Caitlin Dougherty (Rhythm of Ireland)
3 Jacque Clark (Lynn)
4 Michelle Rueb (Tir Na Gael)
5 Jennifer Castellano (Petri School)
6 Victoria Franklin (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
7 Megan Boszko (Peter Smith)
8 Taylor Hollister (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
9 Victoria DeJesus (O'Grady-Quinlan)
10 Elizabeth Crouse (Marie Moore)
11 Brittany Jackson (Kerry)
12 Laura McKeon (Teelin)
13 T Morgan LaPointe (O'Grady-Quinlan) and Grace Hulseman (Peter Smith)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 9
1 Bridget Abraldes (Mulvihill-Lynch)
2 Maggie Webber (Mulvihill-Lynch)
3 T Lily Anne Bruer (McElligott) and Simone Loysen (Culkin)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 10
1 T Sierra Donovan (O'Rourke) and Farran Dougherty (Broesler) and Kasey Methven (Broesler)
2 Paige Diecidue (Mulvihill-Lynch)
3 Grace Mahon (Shea-Jennings)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 12
1 Riley Maeve Dolan (Broesler)
2 Seana Isaac (O'Grady-Quinlan)
3 Kerri Betz (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
4 Gianna Cheeseman (Broesler)
5 Haylee Kirk (McDade-Cara)
6 Chloe Williams (Ardmore)
7 Kasey Van Doran (Flynn)
8 Emily Lizins (McDade-Cara)
9 Maeve Abraldes (Mulvihill-Lynch)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 14
1 Aine Claire Sheehan (McDade-Cara)
2 Ciara Murphy (Petri School)
3 Anna May Fitch (Shea-Jennings)
4 Abby Coyman (Lynn)
5 Lily Schwoerer (Lynn)
6 Emme Toombs (Broesler)
7 Ciara Burke (Coyle)
8 Breanne Toolan (O'Grady-Quinlan)
9 Katie Hosey (McAleer)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 16
1 Blair Croce (Early-McLoughlin)
2 T Hannah Coyman (Lynn) and MaryKate DiChiara (Inishfree)
3 Taylor Collins (Petri School)
4 Abbey Croce (Early-McLoughlin)
5 Mary Thayer (An Rince Mor)
6 Isabella DeJesus (O'Grady-Quinlan)
7 Audrey Hutton (Burke-Conroy)
8 Laura O'Hanlon (Lynn)
9 Michaela Hollister (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
10 Nicole DeSouza (Petri School)
.
Open Championship Girls Under 18
1 Gina Carriero (Lynn)
2 Theresa Oei (Griffith)
3 Shannon O'Gorman (Ryan-Kilcoyne)
4 Brianna Sheehan (O'Shea-Chaplin)
5 Moira Ragen (Culkin)
6 Colleen Strazdas (Peter Smith)
7 Elisabeth DiMauro (Lynn)
.
Open Championship Ladies 18 & Over
1 Samantha Merritt (DeNogla)
2 Meagan Moffett (O'Shea-Chaplin)
3 Emma Roithmayr (O'Rourke)
4 Keira Murphy (Mulvihill-Lynch)
5 Shannon Corrigan (Early-McLoughlin)
.
Open Championship Boys Under 12
1 Colin Vecchiariello (Gilleoghan)
.
Open Championship Boys Under 14
1 Owen Luebbers (Broesler)
2 Aaron Wolf (Bell)
3 Alex Lucas Papados (Culkin)
.
Open Championship Boys Under 16
1 Lachlan Nidds (Broesler)
.
Open Championship Boys Under 18
1 Nicholas Paulson (Broesler)
.
Open Championship Men 18 & Over
1 Peter Ryan (Smith-Houlihan)