2024 February | Old-Style Step Dance – Sean-nós & Set Dance with Maldon

intro

Introducing the Online Class Old-Style Step dance! Get ready to jump, swirl, and tap your way into the intriguing world of traditional Irish dance. This weekly online Irish old-style step dance class is the perfect opportunity for dancers of all levels to indulge in their passion for dance and embark on an exciting journey like no other.

Join us on Tuesdays as we take you on a delightful adventure of learning new steps at a nice handy pace. Whether you are a seasoned dancer or a beginner, our expert instructors will guide you through every move with patience and expertise. Don’t worry about missing a session – all classes are recorded, allowing you to dance to your heart’s content at any time that suits you best.

Now, let’s dive into Wednesdays, where we woodshed the steps. No, it’s not a mystical dance move, but rather a term embraced by musicians to describe intensive practice sessions before taking their tunes out to a lively session. Here, we’ll practice and fine tune the steps you learned on Tuesday, ensuring that your feet are in perfect harmony with the rhythm of the music.

Thursdays are all about embracing the spirit of “Keep Her Lit.” As the Irish saying goes, keep the tune going, even if you make a few missteps along the way. In this session, we’ll work on the entire dance routine learned thus far, allowing you to immerse yourself in the magic of old-style step dance. So, let your inhibitions go, and let your feet do the talking!

And then comes Fridays, where the energy is high, and the excitement is palpable. Get ready to experience the Speed and Craic session, where we focus on speed, endurance, and most importantly, having an absolute blast. Craic, which loosely translates to fun and a good time, perfectly encapsulates the joyous atmosphere you’ll find here. It’s all about dancing up to tempo, pushing your limits, and reveling in the sheer exhilaration of the dance.

Our signature learning and practice style ensures that you’ll master these mesmerizing dances in just half-hour sessions. Take them live and dance alongside others, or enjoy the flexibility of dancing at your very own leisure. The choice is yours!

Old-style step dance is a treasure trove of Irish cultural heritage, offering a glimpse into an era before Riverdance and modern step dance. With its distinctive lower-to-the-ground style and intricate steps, this magnificent dance form is the perfect choice for those who crave a routine and meticulously mapped-out steps.

So, let your inner dancer leap into action, and join us for the Online Class Old-Style Step dance. Let’s kick, twirl, and shuffle our way through the captivating rhythms of Irish tradition, all while having a ton of fun. Get your dancing shoes ready, because this class is about to take you on a journey you’ll never forget.

Tuesdays – Learn steps
Wednesdays – Woodshed steps
Thursdays – Keep Her Lit
Fridays – Speed & Craic

week 1

Welcome Step Dancers!

Old-style step dance, not to be confused with sean-nós dance, is the precursor to modern Irish step dance. If you have step dance experience many steps in this style will be familiar to you. In traditional Old-style step dance each step is danced for eight bars and is danced on the right and left foot. In future courses we will learn set dances which are “crooked” with a variety of bars of music (i.e. 7 1/2 bar phrases). We begin the Old-style step dance series by learning Maggie Pickie. This is the perfect introduction to old-style step dance. Each step has a structure that is repeated four times. Maggie Pickie is considered a set dance meaning there are specific steps to a specific tune. It is not crooked as many set dances are.

Maggie Pickie or Maggie Pickins is a traditional dance from Donegal. This particular dance is currently experiencing widespread popularity and we love it too. I first learned Maggie Pickie from Nic Gareiss during a residency that he held at Stomptown Collective Dance Studio in Portland, Oregon. Nic got the dance from Joe McGuiggan. Through several years of performing Maggie Pickie I created a few new steps along the way to go with the traditional dance. I include one of these new steps in the lesson — the Slide step. I hope you will love to dance Maggie Pickins as much as I do.

Want to get a jump on your learning start here with the full Maggie Pickie Course.

Damhsa áthais sona ort! (Happy dancing to you!)

Tuesday

Cross
Hop hop flick flick
Side step (I taught this wrong :(, the good news is what I taught is very similar to the box step which we will learn on Wednesday) Correct version is here and in the Wednesday video.

Wednesday

Thursday

Friday

week 2

Welcome to week 2 where we will learn the Priest in His Boots. I first learned this dance from Ben Power who learned it from James Keane while at the University of Limerick. James danced this a little differently than most dancers today. James danced the 4th step as two different steps with the 4th step being only 8 bars and then going back to the 16 bar structure. We will be learning the Tubridy because the music I have and the music you will be able to find will most likely be for a straight version of the dance. I will demonstrate both versions. If you dance this with live music you can make your choice how you want to dance the piece.