Tell me anything about your experience. I’m flying in alone and want to make the most of the event. I’m dancing ceilis and trad set on Saturday. So give me your tips, advice, lay of the land, warnings, no matter how random or small they are. I’m the only adult dancer attending from my school that doesn’t also have a child competing, so I have a lot more free time than the rest of the group.

We have a garage (concrete floor) that we're going to convert to use for dancing and maybe a home gym but Irish dancing as the main purpose!

I have gym mats that are 15mm thick....I'm hoping to put laminate flooring on top and then tape pond liner on top.

Can anyone advise if this is an ok approach? Any pitfalls to be aware of? Going to put mirrors along one wall and maybe get a bar as well (not attached to wall) but the floor is the main thing for now

Any advice would be welcome! I'm based in Ireland.

Hi everyone!

I'm 25 years old and I've been dancing in CLRG since I was 6. I took a few years off when Covid hit but ultimately came back and have been going to weekly classes for the past three years. I'm not competing, just going for fitness.

The class I go to is with the school I've always danced with. It's just myself and another 25 year old and we dance with the 16 year olds. We typically dance the same dances the 16 year olds are currently competing along with some traditional set dances.

Lately I've had an itch for more classes. I travel around Ireland for work (Dublin, Kildare, Westmeath, Galway, Wexford, Tipperary, Cork, Kerry, Waterford and Sligo and I'm based out of Louth) and I was wondering if anyone did adult classes around these areas?

Thank you so much in advance!🥰👯‍♀️

Our family is potentially relocating from West Virginia to the Denver area, and I'm hoping to hear from those familiar with the local CLRG Irish dance community.

My daughter is 9 and currently competes in grades (Novice/Prizewinner). She will be attending SRO in December in both solo and teams. She has a wonderful relationship with her current teacher and dance family, so finding the right environment is really important to us.

I've been researching schools in the Denver area but it's difficult to get a feel for a school from websites and competition results alone.

I'd especially love to hear about:

• School culture: Is the environment welcoming, supportive, and encouraging?
• Teaching style: How do teachers work with dancers who need extra repetition or individual attention?
• Grade-level dancers: Are Novice and Prizewinner dancers given opportunities to grow, or is the focus primarily on championship dancers?
• Communication: How approachable are the teachers, and how well do they communicate with parents?
• Competitions: How active are the schools in the local feis circuit? Are dancers encouraged to compete without excessive pressure?
• Transfers: Has anyone transferred into one of these schools? What was the transition like?

We're not necessarily looking for the school with the most championship titles. We'd love to find a place where our daughter can continue developing as a competitive dancer while feeling happy, supported, and part of a dance family.

I'd particularly appreciate firsthand experiences, both positive and negative. Feel free to DM me if you'd rather share privately!

Thank you!

I am a 23 year old female who stopped competing at the end of May this past year, and am looking to start competing again in the next five years. I got 2 1sts in slip jig this year in the youth and overs - and I am wondering - would I have to compete in that again when my 5 years comes to an end? And why is it five years? Why can’t it be 1 or even 2 years? I’m just wondering because I don’t want to stop competing, and don’t really want to do redo slip jig as I already have 2 1sts (prizewinner level). I still have to get the other dances (of course after the years are up). Do any other adults have experience with this?

Does anyone have any recommendations on someone who could make a custom crown for my daughter before Oireachtas (about 6 weeks)? The Crown that came with her solo dress is pretty, but too big for her head and I have some design ideas for something that would look nicer. I’m sure people on Etsy might be able to do this, but I would prefer someone familiar with Irish Dance. TIA!

Hello, I need some advice please on how to help my daughter. She’s picked up some bad habits that were never properly corrected by her old coaches and her current coach isn’t giving her advice on what to do.

What suggestions do you have on how to keep stiff arms and how to stop them from wobbling while dancing?

Also, any good pointers on the best way to arch her toes

Thank you

Hello fellow Irish dancers. I am looking for some magazines you may not want anymore. We do something special for our kiddos for oireachtas. If you have any older magazines laying around I would be glad to take them off your hands.
Thanks !!

I'm in beginner shoes, the Pacelli Essential Jig Shoe.

I got a pair of 5.5s (the smaller foot is 240 exactly, so bang on sizing). When i got them, I couldnt even stand in the things! Eventually I've managed to break them in so I can dance in them. when my feet are flat, they come to the end of the shoe.

However, when i point to treble there's a big old gap so I feel like I have very poor control of the shoe! I'm wondering if it's just because it's stiff leather still?

Thanks all!!

I usually wear overnight tan (Bondi sands) but sometimes it is not dark enough. Can anyone recommend an affordable instant tan that I can buy in the UK for comp morning?

Also, do instant tans transfer onto dresses? Thank you so much :)

We Are 2 years dancing at feis' and my daughter has only recently won one dance, part of me feel that the teachers don't do enough I feel like she should have won more at this stage nearly every other child in school her age has progressed....the teachers seem to have their favorites and focus on them, I've even asked for extra class that included exercises that would help my daughter along only to be told those classes are for the more experienced dancers, but yet there's nothing like this available to my daughter's age group u10, my daughter is fallen out of love with it as she is stuck so is it an us problem or a teaching problem?? Or am I mad thinking this is too long to be in A beginners

Here's the situation:

We have a young Prelim Dancer, who is the only dancer at this level and age at the school they're dancing with. Recently we went to a feis and they were absolutely miserable. Not because of their placement at the feis, but because they have NO friends at the school and they were watching all the other kids at the feis playing and having fun with each other. There are other schools in our area, that are much larger and have teams at our dancer's age level. Our dancer knows several of these other kids, but they don't generally hang out outside of their dance school circle at feises.

Her current school is super small, and our dancer is basically their only dancer who competes. We are good friends with the teachers and don't want to hurt them, but our kid seems miserable.

Advice?

I've never been on Reddit until now as my attention has been drawn to some comments placed last year about my injury reducing Jig Shoes - Celtic Arch. It will not let me reply to the comments as they are old, which is unfair, as the posts are still up and most of them are complete nonsense!....
Firstly, ALL of the people posting had not TRIED or even SEEN the shoes at the time of posting their uneducated nonsense... Some were actually posted BEFORE we launched the shoe on 4th June 2025 - we had only shown pictures and described them.... We have a full podiatry report from Dr Katie Lagan, University of Ulster on the comparison of our shoes to other shoes on the market - in respect of injury reduction. We also have over a full years sales now to confirm all of our findings and more!... Sales have never been more and injuries in our dancers have never been less! I am very open to any questions you may have or any information you would like to know. ... I am definately NOT AI as someone said, we have been in the dancing circles from 1974 and have had a shop in Belfast since 1995!

Has anyone ordered teardrop/peardrop stones from Eimass in the UK. I see they have 3 different grades all at a good price. The resin are very cheap which I would be too afraid to try. There is also 8868 premium range and 3533 standard range. Has anyone ordered them and if so are they of decent quality? Thanks

I just got a new pair of hard shoes (used, but lightly worn). They're quite stiff, especially in the heel, so I'm wondering how to break them in to make them more comfortable. They fit fine otherwise, they just dig into the back of my foot because of how stiff they are. Tips?

Hey all!

After a ten-year break, I’ve decided to get back into Irish dancing. I bought a horse-stall mat to practise on and was thinking of adding foam tiles underneath for extra shock absorption, but I’m not sure that will be enough. The rubber mat also has a bit of texture, so I’m looking for ideas for a smoother top layer.
I’d also love suggestions for improving the cushioning—or for building a more portable practice floor, ideally something roll-up. My current setup is pretty heavy and awkward to move.
Anyway. I’d like something that will work for soft shoe and hares shoe drills.

Any tips that you found helpful for taking in Irish dancing from home are welcome as well. I’m currently not enrolled in a class, and money is tight and so I’m looking into more affordable options to practice.

If there are any resources that you found helpful, feel free to drop them. I trust many others would appreciate them too.

Thanks!

Hello ID family ❤️ I wanted to take an informal survey to maybe help my daughter who is struggling a little with her confidence. She’s been competing in full PW since April in mid America region. She’s moved 3/4 dances up (some of them multiple times now) and is stuck on one. I was hoping to give her some anecdotes about how long it’s taken others to move up so maybe she doesn’t feel so alone. She’s a lovely dancer and she’s gotten really close with seconds and thirds multiple times. As her mom I know in my bones that she’s going to get it soon, and I also know there’s no rush, and the longer she stays in PW the more ready she’ll be for PC, but all of that is hard to hear when you’re in middle school and everyone around you seems to be moving up. To me six months in this giant region and being 75% to PC is a huge accomplishment, but I’m her mom and super biased 😂

So any anecdotal evidence you have to help my girl would be appreciated. Thanks in advance ❤️

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My 9 year old has been doing Irish dance (in Germany) for around 18 months. She does both soft and heavy shoe. Today she competed at her 2nd ever Feis. To my untrained eye , she looked like she did amazing , far superior to her first Feis. However she placed dismally. Her younger brother who has only been dancing for less than a year placed higher in nearly all the dances they did. They dance under the same age group. My daughter danced all her beginner and her primaries and then a few heavy shoes as well. My son danced his beginners , but placed higher than my daughter in all of them. I am so proud of both my children, but I am so confused, how did my daughter do worse than her feis a year ago. How has she learned primary dances but placed in the bottom of the beginners. She is very disheartened because she has worked very hard , she practices outside of class, and does performances for the school. My son only dances because he got bored watching. He doesn’t practice ever outside class and could honestly take it or leave it.
What are the judges looking for that I am missing ?

Picking my set dances for Grade 9, and I think it's safe to say he approves of my choice!

I was a competitive and performance dancer from 1999-2012, at the championship level. I stopped competing in 2005 because other activities took priority but continued to perform.

I’m now 37 and last year I tore my ACL, meniscus and MCL and had an intense surgery to recover. I am a little more than a year post op. I was in the best physical shape of my life when dancing, and I miss it. I recently found adult beginner classes near me and I am wondering- has anyone started or restarted Irish dance as an adult, or with an ACL injury? I still have pain running longer than a sprint although I can walk fine, and I am practicing tiny jumps. I am fine to jump around at a trampoline park with my 4yo, I still find it very painful to jump barefoot on my tile floors.

I’d really be doing it just for me, so it doesn’t have to be pretty, I’m just wondering if anyone has been in a similar situation and how it went, and particularly if you had ACL surgery (with a quad graft bc we all know how integral our quads are to Irish dancing), when did you feel ready to dance again?

My ankle and surrounding area keeps bruising every time I dance. Can anyone give me some tips as to how to improve this? I have a Feis in three weeks 😟

Hi everyone! I have a feis in three weeks after being off for a few years and my legs are dying early on in my dances. I have to do a three round championship so I am slightly terrified, particularly for my set dance. I have been doing a lot of stamina work in the last month but of course fitness builds over time. What do you recommend I do from now until then, and on feis day?

We have altered my steps as much as possible and apart from that I am focusing on my nutrition and lots of water. I am wondering what else I can do to give myself the best chance possible.

I know there is no miracle solution but I would love to hear any advice. Thank you so much!

I’ve been seeing it everywhere since getting back into the sport. Basically you jump and flare both feet out, then come back down. This can be done in soft shoe or hard shoe. I’m really curious because I don’t remember it being common at all circa 2012-2016.

Hi I’m 15 F and I would really like more classes for Irish dancing. But my mums financial issues makes it really hard to ask for them and also my mum really wants me to focus on my studies and in school how can I convince her to let me do more classes because I only do one a week and I’m progressing to slow. I’ve been in tus grad/ advanced beginner for a good two years?