North American Irish Dance Championships Kick Off in Chicago Tuesday

Julie and Caitlin Radcliffe, sisters from McTeggart Irish Dance in Colorado,
at the 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championships in Chicago Monday.
Photo: Feis America LLC

The Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America is hosting the 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championships in Chicago, Illinois July 2 through July 7th.  This highly-competitive event is one of only two qualifying events for the World Irish Dancing Championships scheduled for Boston in 2013.

Julie Showalter, TCRG, ADCRG, of the World Academy of Irish Dance, is a co-chair of the 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championships.  Her welcome letter to dancers, parents, teachers and friends conveys the pride and excitement of the Middle America Region of the Irish Dance Teachers Association of North America at hosting in Chicago.  Fellow co-chairs Tim O'Hare and John Timm, also certified Irish dance teachers and adjudicators, and committee members responsible for organizing this important event, encourage all in attendance to enjoy the beautiful city with family and friends.  Most families, even those who are relatively local, will make a vacation of memories in the Windy City that includes the excitement of the continent's most competitive Irish dancing event all year.

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Read more:

Recap of the 2011 North American Irish Dancing Championships Part 3

For the love of Irish dancing: competition builds character

Adult Irish dancers - adult-friendly competitions in July

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Tuesday will feature nine competitions for six age groups.  Female solo competitions include two groups each of dancers aged 9-10, 14-15, 19-20 and 20 & Over.  Male solo competitions are for Men 19-20 and Men 20 & Over.  On Tuesday alone, more than 800 competitors in these categories will vie for the 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championship, with all dancing both a light-shoe and heavy-shoe dance to live music performed by some of the world's best feis musicians. 

Dancers will compete two or three at a time on a professional stage in front of three certified adjudicators who hail from all over the world, switching to new judges for the second round.  After scores for the first two rounds are officially tabulated, approximately half of the dancers are recalled to dance a third round, which is a contemporary set performed alone on stage for three new judges. 

Each evening, the award ceremony will recognize all of the recalled dancers, culminating with the awarding of World qualification certificates for the very best in each age group (over 10 years of age) as the new North American Irish Dancing Champions are announced.

Tuesday's competitions include six defending champions, all who hail from the Tri-State area of Connecticut, New Jersey and New York:  Kelly McCourt and Anna Sulger from Connecticut; Fiona Dargan, Taylor Kerrane and Gabriella Wood from New York, and Nick Paulson from New Jersey.

A small number of dancers from Australia, Ireland, The Netherlands and United Kingdom have traveled to Chicago to vye for North American Championships as well.  According to Ms. Showater, the 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championships beats past events by a solid ten percent with more than 3,000 dancers competing in solo and team competitions over the five days.

For more information on the competitions, visit the official 2012 North American Irish Dancing Championships Facebook page, and stay tuned here on IrishCentral's Irish Dance page for updates, photos and results.

Looking runway ready at competitions - makeup tips for Irish dancing ladies

by ERIN CONCANNON

Recently, there has been a lot of buzz and press about the glitz and glam of Irish dancing competitions, and how everything goes against the all-natural look. But to those immersed in the competitive world of Irish dance, we know all the self-tanning, makeup and sparkles don't make the champion. It sure helps a dancer feel her best when on stage, though. 

Every girl dreams of dancing—and looking—perfect on the day of a feis. You feel like you could walk down the runway—and own it—once you put on that Gavin Doherty dress and your whole look has been assembled.

Unlike everyday life, when it comes to your makeup for big dance competitions, more is key. Here’s what to put where on the day of competition, like the upcoming 2012 North American Irish Dance Championships.

On your face and legs…We all hate it, but it is a word every Irish dancer has in their vocabulary: Bronzer. And it’s something we all need so we don’t look washed out on stage compared to our beautiful—and colorful—dresses. Two days before a big competition, grab your mom, sister or friend and have them help with evenly applying a coat of self-tanner to your legs. The day of, apply bronzer to your face first before any other makeup. And leave the foundation at home. It’ll give you a cake-like feeling and make you feel sweatier than you actually are.

On your eyes…Whatever colors your dress has on it, those are the colors off your eye shadow palette you should swipe across your lids. Use the main color of your dress as the base, brushing it across your entire eyelid. Then, take one of your secondary dress colors and apply it in your creases. Add a nice blast of eyeliner and a coat of mascara and you’ll have champion-ready eyes that will capture everyone…along with your dancing, of course.

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READ MORE:
A competitive Irish dancer's confession - I struggle with timing

Irish Dancers Cross Train with Ballet for Flexibility and Poise

For the love of Irish dancing - competition builds character
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On your lips…A nice pink lipstick really does wonders for any girl. Don’t like the texture that lipstick gives you? Any 12 or 24-hour gloss kit works as well, too.

On your tips…Every solo Irish dancer is obviously trained to bring her shoulders back and have perfect posture, meaning hands are hardly shown. Bright nail polish will look tacky—and sloppy—so remove all coats the night before taking to the stage. A major must for all doing ceilis!

Everywhere…Sparkles are a great way to complete your look, causing you to shine even more on stage. From sparkly eye shadow to a glittery powder, dust it everywhere so you match those glamorous rhinestones on your costume.

So go out on stage, and wow the crowd. Don’t forget to reapply as necessary between rounds for a fresh glow.

What are some beauty products you always pack in your feis bag? Let us know!

Article reposted from original 7/15/11 posting date.

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!

For the love of Irish dancing - competition builds character

Competition builds character and friends and fans for life!
Photo: Madisyn Finn

By Courtney Kaderbek, Feis America LLC intern 

One thing that makes Irish dancing unique is its competition-based opportunity. I do not know of any other dance form that requires its dancers to compete regularly against each other to advance to the next level. The Irish dance competition system has strengths and weaknesses, but it is the Irish dancers themselves who decide whether the constant competition is a good or bad thing for both their dancing and characters. Competition can build character or break it, and examples of both may be seen at any Irish dancing feis.

Competition can bring out the best or worst in a person. It is difficult to be a good winner and a good loser. It is hard at times to find the will to wish your competitors well, shake off a bad placement, or smile at the girl or boy who has just won first place. For Irish dancers who want to compete, it is very important to consciously choose to use these difficult lessons as opportunities to grow into a stronger, tougher-skinned, kinder person.

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Read more:

Auditions for new Irish dance show at Nationals

An Irish dancer's confession: I struggle with timing

Songs to motivate Irish dancers for competition
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Several months ago, I was not in a very good place with Irish dance. It took countless weeks of grudging dance practices and tiring competitions to make me realize that my goal of moving up to Preliminary Champion had caused me to lose my enjoyment of the fun atmosphere of Irish dancing competitions, as well as my love for Irish dance itself.

Irish dance trophies end up in a box.  Friends last forever!

Not only was the time spent dancing unpleasant, but I placed lower at competitions than I ever had before. My negative attitude was ruining my entire dancing life! That was when I made a decision. I decided that I would never allow anything – my competitors, the judges, my daily practice schedule, the fear of stamina drills – to steal away my love for Irish dancing. I determined to keep Irish dance, first and foremost, fun, which is something that can become difficult for the dedicated, passionate Irish dancer.

Now, at Irish dance competitions, I try to remind myself that the world will not come to an end if I do not win! Certainly I might not advance levels for awhile, but I will still be continually improving my dancing during practices and classes. I might not become an Open Champion anytime soon, but my turn-out will improve, my legs will snap sharper, my posture will stay more erect, and my love for Irish dancing will continue to grow and grow.

The result of this decision has been amazing. I found myself winning the battle against my petty nature, which used to avoid my competitors instead of wishing them well. I actually placed higher in my dances, and I dance at practices with a renewed purpose and vigor. I find myself more motivated to fulfill my biggest Irish dancing dreams than ever before…and now, more than ever, I truly believe it is possible.

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 23rd – 24th June Irish dancing competitions - VIDEOS

Aby PATRICIA MCNAMARA

Heading to Salt Lake City this weekend for the Utah State Feis or Manheim for the Celtic Fling Feis? Or maybe you’re off to Ohio for the Dayton Area Feis or Minnesota for the Twin Cities Feis. New Jersey for the Peter Smith Feis or Connecticut for the New Haven Feis? Or perhaps you’re gearing up for Nova Scotia’s Fundy 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, preparing for the upcoming 2012 North American Irish Dance Championships in Chicago. Best of luck to all competitors and be sure to come back and share your results with us!

 “Sweet Home Chicago” – Blues Brothers
The perfect light tune to play during a nice, sunny drive to that summer feis.

 “Chicago” – Sufjan Stevens
Stretch to this and you’ll be set.
   

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READ MORE:
Songs for the 16th - 17th June Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS

 Songs for the 8th - 10th June Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
 
Songs for the 26th - 28th May Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
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“Chicago Is So Two Years Ago” – Fallout Boy
A great upbeat song to blast before dancing for a crowd.

“Chicago” – Mat Kearney
Play this on the way home from competition, dreaming happy thoughts about nationals.

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!

A competitive Irish dancer's confession: I struggle with timing

Irish dance ghillie iPod Touch cozy
by HoneyBeeBungalow

By Caitlin Buck Feis America LLC contributor

Remember in "The Lion King" how the hyenas flinch whenever someone nearby uttered Mufasa? I'm a competitive Irish dancer who started when I was 18. I have a flinch word too. Mine is... timing.

I had done high kick and jazz on my high school dance team so I was used to learning routines to 8 counts. I did pretty well competing in Irish dance until I got into Novice. In Novice, the dances were no longer taught count-by-count like in Beginner. There was no jump 2,3,4,5,6,7 over-one 2 point hop back... There were just movements taught and the dancers had to assemble the movements to music themselves. I began to struggle with timing. BIG time.

"Listen.  Listen to the music."

A friend confessed that when she started Irish dancing at 15 she thought if she started with the music and ended when the music did she was golden. When we would step up to dance our teacher would meaningfully tap his ear. Listen. Listen to the music. But something would happen after the 5,6, and here you go! It is like my brain would disconnect with the music much like a train might disconnect with railroad ties. Not having counts or words cues to stay with the music, I inadvertently focused solely on my steps.

"Slow down!!"
"Speed up!"
"You were behind from the beginning."
"You were 2 bars ahead the whole time."

Timing. Timing. Timing. My marks were always the same. Timing. Nothing else... but that one word. If it said turn out, flexibility, higher jumps, move more in the steps - those are all understandable corrections. The word timing does NOT pinpoint a problem that is easily fixed. It does not explain when or where a dancer gets off time or whether the problem lies in that they aren’t fully completing a step or if they are adding unnecessary steps. It is in short... not helpful.

Mikela Milozzi trying on hard shoes.
Photo: Bodhran Irish Dancers

So many dancers seem to have the gift of musicality. Like being born with blue eyes, they were born to put steps to music easy as breathing.

Timing. I would go home and put music on and listen as hard as possible. I would perform the dance with my hands and within my head visualize the steps. And I could see it. Then I would dance and be able to hear myself getting behind or speeding ahead. I loved Irish dancing, but I was beginning to feel like the world’s most rotten dancer.

It seems eons ago that one of my teachers said, “When you get this timing issue taken care of you’re going to do really well.” The thing was I had flexibility from being on a high kick team, I could almost kick my face, I could get height on my jumps, I had grace, I could perform... I just couldn’t seem to dance on time with the music to save my life. Seriously it was bad. I had Irish dancers half my height coming up to me with advice.

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Read more:

Irish dancers cross-train with ballet for flexibility and poise

Healthy snacks for competitive Irish dancers

Niall O'Leary adult Irish dancer, musician and teacher

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What helped in my hard shoe above all else was having private lessons with another Irish dancer. She had struggled with timing too and thus knew better how to help. She instructed me to say "but-ter-fly" over and over in my head while dancing hornpipe. I found that saying "Christ-mas-tree" over and over helped me stay with the beat in treble jig. Thanks to her help I made it into Preliminary Championships. Listening to the music while falling asleep has also proven helpful.

I still don’t have great timing, but Irish dancing is something I love to do and at 23 I'm not ready to give it up yet!



Are you an Irish dancer of any age or level struggling with one particular issue? Share in the comment box below and let’s get a discussion started. If there’s one thing we are ALL good at, it’s helping out our Irish dance friends!

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!

Songs for the 16th – 17th June Irish dancing competitions – VIDEOS

by PATRICIA MCNAMARA

 Heading to California this weekend for Feis at the Fair or Illinois for the Mullane Healy Godley Feis? How about British Columbia for the Beautiful British Columbia Feis or Kentucky for the Louisville Feis? Virgina for the Old Dominion Feis or Missouri for the Ozark Mountains Feis? Or perhaps you’re going to New York for the McDonald-Domick-Lonergan Feis or Massachusetts for the Greater Boston Teacher 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!  

“Good Day, Sunshine” – The Beatles
Nothing like a bright start to the day with this chipper tune.  

“Summer in the City” - The Lovin' Spoonful
You’ll want to dance all night after listening to this.  

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READ MORE:
Songs for the 8th - 10th June Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
Songs for the 26th - 28th May Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
Songs for the 12th - 13th May Irish Dancing Competitions - VIDEOS
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“Summer Mood” – Best Coast
Stretch and chill out with this jam.
   

“The Adventure” – Angels and Airwaves
 No matter how you do, feising is all about enjoying the adventure.

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!

2011 World Irish Dancing Championships featured in "Strictly Irish Dancing" televised tonight on TLC

World Irish Dancing Championships podium
Photo courtesy Martin Bradshaw

"Strictly Irish Dancing" is a documentary on the 2011 World Irish Dancing Championships which took place in Dublin, Ireland, for the first time in 15 years.  From the enormous success of Riverdance to the increasingly challenging, glamorous and athletic passion that is competitive Irish dance, "Strictly Irish Dancing" is both fascinating and inspiring.  To the delight of Irish dancers around the world, "Strictly Irish Dancing" will be televised June 13, 2012 at 10:00 p.m. E.S.T. and June 14, 2012 at 12:00 a.m. E.S.T. on TBS.


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Read more:


11 Irish dancers score perfect 300s at the Buffalo Feis


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


Take The Floor gears up for professional Irish dance show summer camp


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From TBS about "Strictly Irish Dancing": "Delve into the world of Irish dance and experience the discipline and dedication it takes to be part of this growing global sport. Follow four students of Irish dance from Ireland, England and America as they prepare for the 2011 World Championships." 

From one fan: "Strictly Irish Dancing” is an entertaining and informative peek into the world of Irish dancing. It’s much less cinematic than Jig but shows a lot more actual dancing. It also provides a better overview of the history and culture, thanks to interviews with everyone from Orfhlaith Ni Bhriain to Gavin Doherty."


Enjoy the program and report your feedback here on Irish Central's Irish Dance page!




Check back here for news, results, photos, interviews and more! Help us celebrate Irish dancing by sharing this story with your friends, like us on Facebook, tweet the link or start a conversation with a comment in the message box below. THANK YOU!