Hop to your knee. Spring onto your right foot.
Then, lead with your right foot and follow with your left foot to the right side of the floor for seven steps.
Lift your right foot and then spring onto your right foot. Step in place on the ball of your left foot.
Now you have done the beginning of an Irish Reel.
Celtic Traditions, 2705 Frederick Road #3, is the new, permanent home of Irish dance in the Auburn-Opelika area.
With classes ranging from beginner level to advanced, as well as an adult class, this new studio is bringing Irish dance for all ages into the spotlight.
Associated with the Drake School of Irish Dance in Atlanta, Ga., Celtic Traditions has been teaching classes for years, just without the stability of a permanent studio.
Debra Armstrong-Wright, co-owner of the studio, said they started with just one class at the Auburn Ballet School and continued to sub-lease studio space wherever and whenever they could find it.
"We are just three moms whose daughters love Irish dance," Wright said, talking about herself and the two other owners, Lisa Weisbrod and Allison Busby.
Along with their new space, Celtic Traditions also has three permanent teachers.
Caroline Cassidy, who has taught on and off since she graduated high school and danced since she was little, teaches half the classes while Amanda Tucker, five-time world championship qualifier, teaches the other half.
Karl Drake, owner of Drake School of Irish Dance, comes once a month to teach workshops.
"These workshops are very popular," Wright said. "We have people come from all over: Florida, Georgia, Mississippi. It's a pretty big deal."
What drives these students to participate in Irish dance is its rich history and competitive spirit.
Irish dance originated in Ireland and consists of two styles of solo dance: hardshoe and softshoe. Hardshoe dances, similar to what is seen in the 1994 show Riverdance, is then broken down into the hornpipe and the treble jig. Softshoe dances consist of the reel, the jig and the slipjig.
Each of these dances has its own timing and set number of beats. All of these solo dances are entirely footwork; arms remain stationery and upper body straight throughout the entire dance.
The history of Irish dance, according to Tucker, is shrouded in myth. One of the main stories is that Protestant women weren't allowed to dance, so they came up with elaborate footwork so, if seen through their windows, it would just look like they were hopping around.
The competition in Irish dance is high. Throughout the summer and fall, students from different schools prepare to compete at the Oireachtas Prep, a regional dance competition where the winners go on to compete at the national level.
During the competition, the dancers are judged individually, all dancing to the same music, but doing different steps. Each school has certain steps they do to certain dances, while some dances have steps that have been done for centuries, Wright said.
One of the favorite parts of competition is the costumes worn.
"The costumes are all long sleeved with a skirt 6 inches above the knee," Tucker said. "They all have bright colors and are pretty elaborate. Anything to catch the judges' attention."
Celtic Traditions currently doesn't have any upcoming performances this fall because they are concentrating on competition, but in the spring they will be traveling to perform in Nashville, Tenn., Charlotte, N.C., Atlanta, Ga., and Dallas, Texas.
If interested in taking classes, contact Celtic Traditions through e-mail at celtic.traditions@gmail.com, their Web site at drakedancersauburn.wetpaint.com or at 334-705-0303. Dancers of any age, male and female, are welcome.
Do you like this story? The Plainsman doesn't accept money from tuition or student fees, and we don't charge a subscription fee. But you can donate to support The Plainsman.
