Irish Dancing
by Anne Damhsoir

I bet some of you badgers and badgerettes are familiar with the ever so popular Irish dance shows "Riverdance" and "Lord of the Dance." But did you know that they actually were inspired by traditional Irish dance?

Irish Step dancing has been around in one form or another for centuries, beginning with the dance masters who would travel to a county and stay for six weeks to teach dancing to the children. They would learn the jig and reel in kitchens, farmhouses, barns or hedge schools. The dance masters eventually formed schools in Ireland, with some of the best coming from Counties Kerry, Cork, and Limerick.

During the 1800s, a popular event was a cake dance. A cake would be placed on a stand in the center of a field, it being the prize for the best dancer. The winner would, of course, "take the cake."

In the last 150 years Irish dance has evolved greatly in terms of locations, costumes, and dance technique. Today, competitions are mainly held indoors or at the local fairgrounds, quite a change from when they were held in barns or in the outdoors with a truck bed as the stage.

The dance costume was traditionally peasant garb in muted colors with little embroidery on the dress. Irish dance costumes of today are seen in every color of the rainbow, covered with embroidery and sequins. Dancers now wear two kinds of shoes, soft-soled "ghillies" for girls and "reel shoes" for boys, and fiberglass tipped hard-soled shoes for both.

In traditional Irish dance competitions today (called a Feis, pronounced "fesh"), there are seven dances performed. Those danced in soft shoes are the reel, light jig, slip jig and single jig. Those danced in hard soled shoes are the treble jig, hornpipe and traditional set. Except for the slip jig, the dances are competed by both boys and girls. Dances are short, often less than one minute and the judges decision is immediate. The music played at a feis is traditional and is usually played by on an accordion, fiddle and sometimes accompanied by a piano.

Feisanna today are held worldwide by certified Irish dance schools. To certify, a teacher must pass an exam on both dancing and teaching with a committee from Ireland. Dancers compete at different levels up to championship where they are able to qualify for the regional and world Irish dance competitions. The only prize a winner takes home is either a medal or trophy and the sense of pride they feel.

The experience of a feis is completely unique, and if any of you badgers get the opportunity to witness one, I'd take it.