The Clark Academy of Irish Dance gets 3 yes votes on America's Got Talent

A garoup of  ceili team dancers from The Clark Academy of Irish Dance
in St. Louis, Missouri
Photo courtesy Clark Academy of Irish Dance

Fifteen talented Irish dancers from The Clark Academy of Irish Dance competed as a group on the Tuesday, May 28th edition of America's Got Talent Season 7.  The dancers - Carlee Miller, Brooke Reimann, Francine and Katie Jane Lawler, Abby and Jake Sieve, Briley Mastis, Ellie and Maggie Gannon, Olivia Smugala, Colleen Crutsinger, Julie Brennan, Erin Tilley, Isabel Kaiser and Kate Hermann - delighted the audience and the judges with their big smiles, gorgeous costumes and lively hard-shoe dancing.



Sharon Osbourne, one of the three judges, was especially enchanted with 5 year-old Katie Jane Lawler, whose finishing touch to the performance was compared to an "Angelina Jolie" move by judge Howie Mandell.  Howard Stern, not to be upstaged, accused the girls of stealing his hairstyle - curly wigs are a traditional part of the competitive Irish dancing costume.

America's Got Talent Season 7 Judge
Howard Stern
Photo courtesy America's Got Talent

The Clark Academy of Irish Dance team makes the second Irish dancing group to make it to the televised show in Season 7.  The New York Irish Dance Company, comprised of competitive and retired Irish dancers from Metropolitan New York from several Irish dance schools - appeared last week to great accolades and a YES vote from Howie Mandell.

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Three YES votes from the judges means The Clark Academy Irish dancers are headed to Las Vegas, Nevada for the next stage in America's Got Talent!  Good luck!


Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page! Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Inaugural Murray School Feis great success - championship list

Open Championship Girls under 13 Top 5
with podium topper Clare Murray Macritchie
Murray Academy Feis
Photo courtesy Natalie Grant

The Murray Irish Dance Academy, from New Hampshire, hosted its first Irish dancing competition on Sunday, May 20, 2012.  Parents and dancers from across New England were quick to send kudos to Anne Murray Macritchie, TCRG, on the Irish dancing school's first feis.  Three random comments on the feis' webpage tell it all:

"Thank you--job well done.  Especially liked all the little touches - from the bright green poster boards to lead us in off the highway and greeters at the door offering to help us get settled and especially the concerted effort to start on time!"

"The awards were really great and so were the people who helped out.  Loved the musicians in the large gym.  We hope to be back next year - GREAT JOB!"

"Nice venue, easy to get to, incredible organization and on time, signs everywhere... Anne you definitely set the bar for all future feis to follow!"

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Read more:

Who doesn't love crystal awards? Ask these Irish dancing boy champs!

Fun Irish dance summer camp themes

Irish National Irish Dancing Championships top team results

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Preliminary Champion Girls under 13 Madysin Finn from O'Shea-Chaplin and friends
Murray Academy Feis
Photo courtesy Madysin Finn

Seven Murray Academy dancers earned the top spot on the podium, with strong dancers from Brady, Bremer, Dunleavy Shaffer, Lenihan, McInerney and O'Shea-Chaplin rounding out the Preliminary and Open Champions.

Two Preliminary Champions - Bridget O'Connor from Murray and Ainsley Welch from Brady - scored perfect 300s in the Boys & Girls under 8 and 9, and Boys & Girls under 10 events.  Other Preliminary Champions were Brynn Golden - Dunleavy Shaffer (under 11), Deirdre Kelly - Brady (under 12), Gabrielle DeSisto - Murray (under 13), Caitlin Lynch - McInerney (under 14), Madisyn Finn - O'Shea-Chaplin (under 15), Bridget Forbes - Lenihan (under 16) and Conor McTavish - Brady (16 & Over).

Sydney Paine, Open Champion Girls under 17
with fellow Dunleavy Shaffer dancers
at Murray Academy Feis 2012
Photo courtesy Sydney Paine

An astounding SEVEN Open Champions also clinched perfect scores!  Congratulations to Brady's Maeve Williams (Girls under 12), Bremer's Siobhan O'Neill (Girls under 16) and Billy Petrocelli (Boys under 14), Murray's Kate Babcock (Girls under 14) and Caroline Mega (Ladies under 18), and O'Shea-Chaplin's Parker Armstrong (Boys under 16) and Kevin McCormack (Boys 16 & Over).

Other Open Champions were Maeve White - Brady (Girls under 9 and under 10 combined), Emily Varga - Murray (Girls under 11), Clare Murray Macritchie (Girls under 13), Harper Mills - O'Shea-Chaplin (Girls under 15),  Sydney Paine - Dunleavy Shaffer (Girls under 17) and Madeline Muench - Murray (Ladies 18 & Over).

Congratulations to the Murray Academy and all the volunteers who helped to make this one of New England's most memorable spring Irish dancing competitions!


Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page!  Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Guaranteed fun summer camp themes for Irish dancing schools

Irish summer dance camp-themed days 

Photos and post by Caitlin Buck, Feis America LLC

Every summer my Irish dance school holds its own camp in our studio. Five days of intense dancing that have traditionally all been themed to add a dash of fun for the younger dancers. As an older dancer, there are more opportunities to get involved in the booster club, and my first thing I was ever in charge of was (get ready): camp themes and snack sign up. Major stuff eh?? Anyway the last few years I have come up with themes, and as summer kicks off, it got me automatically pondering new possibilities.

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Googling camp themes one lazy evening, I happened upon several sites offering lengthy lists of theme inspiration, but what I was really inspired to do was create an Irish dance version of the tradition summer camp themes:

Going off the word REEL:

Reel Nerdy- Huge black nerd glasses, high capris with suspenders, poodle socks, pigtails & the serious faces of very determined dancers on the floor. Picture it. Who wouldn’t keep cracking up all day?

Reel Tough OR Reel Treble- Dress like a solider or pirate or wear camo

Reely Different-Use imagination

Reel Special-Favorite dance outfit

Reel Comfortable- Pajama day!

Reel Glamorous-Movie star glam!

A little Celtic

Fairy or Leprechaun day-Big hit with the youngest dancers

Design your own celtic t-shirt-Utilizing Celtic clip art or gaelic words.

Celtic Socks (instead of crazy socks) -Grab an old pair of poodle socks & some fabric paint & paint on shamrocks, trinity knots & other Celtic designs. (Celtic Socks for the anti-paint: Wear your favorite store bought pair of St. Patty’s day socks.)

Wear Green OR Wear Shamrocks-Note: This one radiates originality.

Oireachtas Survivor

Class survivor theme for the entire week!  Age groups or levels can be made into tribes or clans for extra camaraderie. Teams get together to make bandannas, arm bands, or t-shirts.

Wear camo, black, war paint

Create a shirt for Oireachtas

Think Hunger Games: Working on the Odds being in our favor!


Summer is an opportunity to mix fun with Irish dance training and practice at Irish dance schools. With most studios offering their own version of intensive summer Irish dance camp, it's a chance to meet older and younger dancers at every level, and often, it means a college-level or guest workshop dancer joins for skill or choreography work. Make the most of your summer camp Irish dance experience!

Please share your thoughts about what makes the most fun and your ideas for keeping dance in the summer,whether you are headed for a big competition or just want to stay in shape by posting in the comments section below.

Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page!  Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Songs for the 26th – 28th May Irish dancing competitions – VIDEOS

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA

Heading to British Columbia this weekend for the West Coast Irish Dance Championships or Illinois for the Chicago Feis? Ohio for the Akron AOH Feis or Cleveland Feis? How about California for the California Spring Feis or Maryland for the Comhaltas Irish Dance Festival? Or perhaps Tennessee for the Memphis Feis.

No matter your competitive destination this weekend, we want to share four tunes you should add to your own playlist before lacing up and taking the stage. Best of luck to all competitors. And be sure to come back here and share your results!  

“Dance, Dance, Dance” – The Beach Boys
Summer’s so close! So forget school for a second and just dance this weekend.  

“The Adventures of Rain Dance Maggie” – Red Hot Chili Peppers
Part smooth, part toe-tapping, this puts you in the perfect mood to grab those shoes.  

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READ MORE:
Songs for the 12th - 13th May Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS

Songs for the 5th - 6th May Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
 
Songs for the 28th - 29th April Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
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“Dancing in the Street” – Martha Reeves and the Vandellas
C’mon, you know you’re guilty of doing a li’l step no matter where you are.

“Dance With Me Tonight” – Olly Murs
Play this and you’ll immediately get the energy to dance.


Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page! Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Doherty's Carson and Taylor Defend Irish National Irish Dancing Championship Titles: Top 5 Ladies Results

Therese Corless, 2012 Ladies 19-20 Champion with 3rd place Niamh O'Sullivan
2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championships
Photo courtesy Therese Corless

At the Irish National Irish Dancing Championships Sunday, several of the ladies' competitions brought smiles and tears to long-time friends and competitors in Dublin.  2012 World Irish Dancing Champion Therese Corless from Aaron Crosbie topped the podium for Ladies 19-20.  Amy Monaghan, who came in 2nd, also placed 2nd in her age group at the All Ireland Irish Dancing Championships to England's Jessica Hindley.

Top 5 Ladies 19-20

Champion Therese Corless from Aaron Crosbie in Munster Region
2-Amy Monaghan from Siobhan McDonnell in Connaught Region
3-Niamh O'Sullivan from Elaine Kavanagh in Leicester Region
4-Rachel Hallahan from Higgins in Munster Region
5-Rachel O'Meara Curran from Doherty in Ulster Region

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Irish National Irish Dancing Championships top teams

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Sinead Carson (right) Ladies 17-18 Champion with 3rd place Anne-Marie Keany
2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championships
Photo courtesy Sinead Carson

Sinead Carson and Niamh Taylor, 2012 World Irish Dancing Champions from Doherty clinched the 2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championship for Ladies 17-18 and 18-19, respectively, in Dublin.

Top 5 Ladies 17-18

Champion Sinead Carson from Doherty in Ulster Region
2-Eadaoin McGinley from Croghan-Greene in Munster Region
3-Anne Marie Keany from Hession in Connaught Region
4-Muriel Burke from Mona Ni Rodaigh in Ulster Region
5-Beth Gorman from Doherty in Ulster Region

Top 5 Ladies 18-19
2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championships
Photo courtesy Melanie Kane (far left)

Niamh Taylor holds four World Irish Dancing Championship titles from 2007, 2008, 2011 and 2012.  Top 3 in Ladies 18-19, Taylor, Clodagh Roper and Tara Walsh were, respectively, the three highest-placing Irish competitors in Ladies 18-19 at the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championships.  4th place Chelsea Kane and 5th place Niamh McMahon also each placed in the Top 20 at 2012 Worlds.

Top 5 Ladies 18-19

Champion Niamh Taylor from Doherty in Ulster Region
2-Clodagh Roper from Domican in Ulster Region
3-Tara Walsh from Higgins in Munster Region
4-Chelsea Kane from Cresham Academy in Connaught Region
5-Niamh McMahon from Jackie O'Leary in Leicester Region

Claire Greaney, Rebecca Loughran and Clare McDermott
2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championships
Photo courtesy Norah Loughran

2012 All Ireland Irish Dancing Champion Claire Greaney, who placed 2nd at the 2012 Worlds to Suzanne Coyle from Scotland, is the 2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Champion for Senior Ladies.  Two additional ladies who placed in the Top 10 at 2012 Worlds - Loughran and Callanan-Ryan - claimed the 2nd and 3rd placements in Dublin.  McDermott and Caden, who placed 4th and 5th in the Irish National Irish Dancing Championships, were also Top 20 in the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championships.

Top 5 Senior Ladies Over 20

Champion Claire Greaney from Hession in Connaught Region
2-Rebecca Loughran from Doherty in Ulster Region
3-Ciara Callanan-Ryan from Michael Ryan in Munster Region
4-Clare McDermott from Ard Rialla O'Donoghue in Ulster Region
5-Ann-Marie Caden from Elaine Kavanagh in Leicester Region


Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page!  Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Irish National Irish Dancing Championships More Teen Girls Top 5 Solo Results

Irish National Irish Dancing Championships 2012
Top Five Girls 15-16
Photo Breda Gregan

The 2012 Irish National Dancing Champion for Girls 15-16, Ellen Kennedy, placed 9th at Worlds and 10th at the All-Irelands.  Shauna Ryan, who placed 4th at the Irish Nationals, was the highest-placing Irish dancer in her age group at the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championships, taking 5th place in both Belfast and at the 2012 All Irelands.  Rounding out the Irish Nationals Top 3 was Codie Shiels who placed 6th at Worlds and 4th at the All Irelands in 2012. Top 5 Girls 15-16 Champion Ellen Kennedy from O'Connor in Connaught Region 2-Rachel Galligan from Lyons in Ulster Region 3-Codie Shiels from Doherty in Ulster Region 4-Shauna Ryan from Scoil Ui Nuallain in Munster Region 5-Ann-Marie McDonnell from Ard Rialla O'Donoghue in Leicester Region Cyra Taylor, who tied with North America's Melanie Valdes for the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championship, won the Girls 13-14 event at last weekend's Irish National Irish Dancing Championships in Dublin.  Taylor also is the 2012 All Ireland Irish Dancing Champion in her age group.  Meghan Bonner placed third at both the Irish Nationals and Worlds this year. Cyra Taylor wins Girls 13-14 Irish National Irish Dancing Championship 2012 Photo courtesy Scoil Rince McConomy Bradley Top 5 Girls 13-14 Champion Cyra Taylor from McConomy Bradley in Ulster Region 2-Aine McGill from McNelis Cunningham in Ulster Region 3-Meghan Bonner from Bonner-Cannon in Ulster Region 4-Rebekah Bell from Ard Rialla O'Donoghue in Leicester Region 5-Aoife Cremins from Croghan-Greene in Munster Region --------------------- Read more: Irish National Irish Dancing Championships team results New York Irish Dance Company on America's Got Talent Taylor and Valdes share 2012 World Irish Dancing Championship title ---------------------- Shannon Bradley clinched the 2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championship for Girls 14-15.  Bradley also holds three World Irish Dancing Championship and All-Ireland Irish Dancing Championship titles, including 2012.  Amymae Dolan, the 2010 World Irish Dancing Champion took second at both the Irish Nationals, All Irelands and World Irish Dancing Championships this year. Shannon Bradley Girls 14-15 World, All Ireland and Irish National Dancing Champion 2012 Photo courtesy Bradley Family Top 5 Girls 14-15 Champion Shannon Bradley from Doherty in Ulster Region 2-Amymae Dolan from Carson in Ulster Region 3-Olivia Murray from Mona Ni Rodaigh in Ulster Region 4-Caitlin Simpson from Elaine Kavanaugh in Leicester Region 5-Amy Harley from Doherty in Ulster Region Congratulations to all who qualified and competed, and special congratulations to the Top 5 and their teachers on an amazing weekend! Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page!  Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!

Irish National Irish Dancing Championships Top Team Results

Champion team dancers from Kiely-Walsh
2012 World Irish Dancing Championships
Photo courtesy Paul Seale

Seven team competitions involving hundreds of skilled Irish dancers kept audiences enthralled this weekend at An Coimisiun le Rinci Gaelacha's Irish National Irish Dancing Championships in Dublin.  Irish dancing schools from every region of Ireland competed for the top spot on the podium, and seven winners, including three teams from Ui She in the Leicester Region, were the delight of Irish dance enthusiasts in attendance at CityWest.

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Read more:

Recap of 2012 World Irish Dancing Championship team results

Irish National Irish Dancing Championships solo girls Top 5 Saturday

Adult Irish dancing team at Villanova University

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Full results are available at FeisResults.  Champions are as follows:

2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championship Teams

• Minor Girls' Ceili Under 11 Champions Mona Ni Rodaigh from the Ulster Region
• Junior Girls' Ceili 13-16 Champions Team B from Ui She in the Leicester Region
• Junior Mixed Ceili 13-16 Champions Ni Chearra-O'Baolain-McMahon from the Ulster Region
• Girls' Senior Ceili 16-19 Champions Kiely-Walsh from the Munster Region
• Senior Mixed Ceili Over 16 Champions Ui She from the Leicester Region
• Ladies' Ceili Over 19 Champions Ui She from the Leicester Region
• Senior Over 16 Figures Champions Kiely-Walsh from the Munster Region

2012 World Irish Dancing Champions for the Junior Mixed Ceili 13-16 competition took the Irish National Irish Dancing Championship title.  The highest-placing Irish team for the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championship Girls' Senior Ceili 16-19 event was Kiely-Walsh (after Cashel Dennehy and Claddagh, both from North America) and Kiely-Walsh won the Irish National Irish Dancing Championship for this event.

Ui She Ladies' Ceili Over 19 Team which won the Irish National title this weekend placed second at the 2012 World Irish Dancing Championships after Doherty's Midlands team topped the podium in Belfast.

Congratulations to all the team members from the 2012 Irish National Irish Dancing Championship teams!

Stay tuned for more results from the Irish National Irish Dancing Championships Sunday competitions right here on Go Feis! The Irish Dance Blog.

Like us on Facebook, comment in the box below, Tweet this post to your friends or follow us here on Irish Central's Irish dance page!  Feis America LLC is the world's most respected media feed for Irish dance and has been selected by the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America to provide live commentary and results at the 2012 North American National Irish Dancing Championships!