|
|
Article: The dance: together with language and music. Irish step dancing is irrevocably woven into the tapestry of irish culture. And, as with those two genres. Irish dance is experiencing an unprecedented surge in popularity--not least of all in limerick, where preparations are underway for the world irish dancing championships.
- Article from:
- World of Hibernia
- Article date:
- March 22, 2001
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2001 The World of Hibernia, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
|
Alongside our landscape and traditional Irish music, one of the images most associated with Ireland is our unique step dancing tradition, which is now more popular worldwide than ever before in its 300-year history. This can partly be attributed to the success of shows such as Riverdance, which illustrated the beauty of Irish dance to audiences worldwide, while demonstrating to young generations of would-be Irish dancers that jigs, reels and hornpipes were a passport to a world stage.
As we know it, Irish dancing dates back 300 years, according to Dr. Catherine Foley of the Irish World Music Centre in the University of Limerick. Dr. Foley is Director of UL's MA ...