by Siobhan Gavin
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Irish dancing is seen as
a hobby for young girls, however for those involved it can be seen as much more than this.
For fans of this style of dance the traditional sport when done professionally
can be a display of talent and vision. Anyone who participates in Irish dancing
will know it can take up to 2 hours to complete hair and make-up before being
ready for a national champion competition, including fake tan, wigs and a cover
of make-up.
Yet some argue that Irish dancing is conforming itself into a tamer
version of American beauty pageants and has brought a shallow aspect to the
sport. With the Belfast Telegraph
publishing an article describing the Irish tradition as, ‘the most embarrassing and grotesque
bastardisation of traditional Irish culture in existence,’ with the ‘the vulgar
costumes, the orange tans, the flesh-crawlingly OTT make-up and the outrageous
expense.’
Siobhan Gavin spoke to Law student and Irish dancer Charlotte
Houseman on what it's really like and how she balances her passion for
dancing with university.
Starting her dancing
journey at the age of 5 Charlotte has now been participating in the hobby for 17 years. Now at 22 she has
been part of up to 1500 competitions. With no Irish roots, which Charlotte said
is unusual for a dancer, she was first introduced to the sport on her 5th
birthday when she got tickets to see Riverdance and fell in love. She continued
to pester her mum to start at a local class and her love grew from there.
“I’ve previously had to
learn to balance my studying with dance practice and competitions, sometimes
taking work with me to the competitions as they can be very long days with time
to spare.”
Her decision to attend Kent University Leeds .
The World Irish dance championship, which was hosted this year in
“I
always wanted to compete at Worlds. It was the absolute ultimate dream for me
to qualify and get to compete there! I chose the competitive route of dancing
because I really enjoyed this.”
Irish dancing marks on
appearance as well as skill. The sport is a very expensive hobby, with charges
for lessons, entry fees, outfits and travel cost. Charlotte had to start travelling back from university
to Leeds costing her £50 in travel fees, six times a
term, and with dresses costing up to £1000 per competition season it is a
commitment and a half. However Charlotte loves the costume side to the sport and
always feels comfortable in what she is given to wear.
“It gives you a chance to
show a bit of personality on stage which is often quite restricted by the
dancing itself. The
only side of the costumes and make-up that is a little embarrassing is the style
of the dresses. They are unique to Irish Dancing and so many see them as very
odd.”
'Jig' documentary on Irish dancing
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| Charlotte dressed for a competition |
It seems Irish dancing as a hobby comes at quite an expense that many may not realise, however the love by dancers for the sport and the achievement to competing in the Worlds champions appeals to young talent all over the world. As the Irish tradition lives on, although some may criticise the image it is now portraying. For those involved in this world, like
“It is definitely my plan to stay involved with Irish Dancing, though
not in competitive manner. I aim to take my teaching exams after graduating and
so set up my own dance school.”
Please remove this article immediately. It is about me yet I gave no permission for this. The photographs have been taken and used without my knowledge and the quotes are made up. This is not acceptable in any way. Remove this all immediately!
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