What Judges Look For!

Sharon Whelan MacSweeney ADCRG, BG of the Whelan Academy of Irish Dance 

Offers Important Advice to Dancers. *Partial reprint of our article - read more in our July/August issue

What big competitions have you judged?

I have judged the Australian Nationals, New Zealand Nationals, many North American qualifiers along with judging in Ireland and England.

Each of these competitions filled me with great pride because when my parents immigrated from Ireland and registered my sisters and I at dance lessons, little did they know that it would be such a worldwide phenomenon.

It is a joy watch to watch dancers from all over the world perform a dance form that I love so much. I am very lucky to be such an active adjudicator and to judge throughout the United States on a regular basis.

Dancers often ask how adjudicators handle common blunders such as trips, slips and falls. Do you mark down dancers for these issues?

All three of these can be quite different. You need to be able to evaluate the situation quickly and determine what the cause was. Sometimes it is as easy as a slippery part of the floor but other times it can be caused by over dancing or aggressive dancing. A sign of a good dancer is one that can continue their performance and overcome a slip or a knock from another dancer.

Murray Academy raises $3000 In support of dance families

On May 19th, the Murray Academy hosted their annual spring feis in Stratham, NH, USA.

Dancers traveled from all over North America to attend the popular feis.

The feis was organised by the dance school's Parent's Club, Cara Rince which aptly translates to "Friend of Dance."

The club's goal is to support the Murray Academy dancers traveling to major competitions.  

Prior to the feis, the group worked tirelessly to create a "FEIS-TASTIC" raffle basket which included donations from Irish Dancing Magazine, Elevation Designs, Camelia Rose, and Reel Champ socks, along with other items donated by the parents of the Murray Academy families.

The raffle was a huge success, raising over $3,000 to offset costs of dancers attending the recent North American Irish Dance Championships.

Murray Academy's parent-run group works hand in hand with Anne Murray MacRitchie, TCRG to continually support the dancers in achieving their goals in Irish Dance. 

Now that the annual spring feis is done and dusted, the school is planning a NEW Winter Blackout Feis in January 2020.  Learn more at www.murrayacademy.com

 

Would you like your feis featured in Irish Dancing Magazine? Contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. for promotional feis packages both in print and on our social media!

The Dance Program

for Pre-Schoolers

No matter the age a dancer starts learning their first steps, it’s never easy! There is often chaos in teaching a new beginners’ class - with kids of various ages, all learning at different rates.

Many dancers start as young as two or three, so how can a teacher develop a structured approach to teaching dance to the new generation?

Jump'nJigEnter Fiona Holmes ADCRG. It’s 2010, and a little two-year-old enters her Melbourne classroom.

“It became apparent to me, that there are not many toddlers in the world that could learn the over two threes and beginner reel,” Armed with her Bachelors’ degree in Education, Fiona set

Liffey Rivers -

A HIT with Dancers!

“My daughters announced in the late 1990’s that they did not want to read my old Nancy Drew books because they were “boring,” explains author Brenna Briggs. Brenna was beyond disappointed her daughters didn’t relate to the beloved sleuth, Nancy Drew. “Nancy’s exciting life had been my entire reason for living when I was their age. In fact, after the two of us had been introduced, I began to look at everything differently. Was my home room teacher really a nun? Or was she only pretending to be a nun for some nefarious purpose that I would have to uncover? Was the school librarian really a librarian? And so on….”

By: Mary Catherine Youssi
As appeared in the May-June 2019 issue of IDM


A big feis season is approaching, and your success is all about your mindset. For many dancers, the May-September season presents a great opportunity to compete more, travel to feiseanna, and accomplish goals. Here’s how dancers can set themselves up for success in the coming months.

  1. Make A Plan

Now is the time to look ahead at the next six months and decide which feiseanna you can attend. For dancers in all levels, it is important to compete and perform in front of judges. For grades-level dancers and prelim dancers, every competition is another chance to move up and get closer to Open Championship. Dancers who compete regularly tend to be less nervous on stage, and they receive great feedback from judges and spectators. If possible, try to attend several feiseanna each month, especially if you have competitions in your geographical area. If your family is able, sometimes it’s fun to travel to other places and see how you do. That’s also a great way to meet friends in different regions, states, or countries!

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Resource for Dancers

A Library of Information on the Judging Process!

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Irish Dancing & Culture Magazine ( Irish Dancing Magazine) is the world's leading magazine and website dedicated to Irish Dancing & Culture.

IDM contains the latest results, news, and photos. Meet dancers from all over the globe. Dancers and adjudicators share advice PLUS learn about the latest trends. Don't miss a single issue!