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Anyone ever heard of Riverdance or Lord of the Dance? I'll bet many of you have.
I personally am an Irish step dancer, which is the style of dancing
performed in these stage shows.Irish Dance is hard to understand for many
beginners, because of the feisianna and shows. Feisanna, or feis, are competitions
in which we dance against people of our age and level in order to become a
higher level. Competing is a lot of fun, and a lot of work. Your first feis is
usually very confusing, because it is often hard to find where you need to be
when there are so many people around. Shows usually are a lot of fun, and they
fall either right before St. Patrick's Day, or on it. That means getting out of
school to perform for large groups of people.
In Irish dance there are two types of shoes: Gillies, a soft ballet type slipper,
and the Hard Shoes, which are a bit like tap shoes. You start by learning in
Gillies and advance to the Hard Shoes about a year after you start dancing.
Costumes are also very interesting, as most are one of a kind. You start in a
school uniform, and then when you have 3 dances in Novice level you buy a solo
dress. Solo dresses are usually one of a kind and totally beautiful. Guys,
obviously don't wear dresses. Instead they either wear pants or Kilts, which
unlike Scottish kilts are plain, not plaid.
Well, hopefully that gives you a small idea of the Irish dance world. y-mail me
for more.
Off to Dance,
Molabie, a St. Brendan's Dancer
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