A five-time world qualifying Irish dancer is eager to let loose by swinging her arms and smiling for spectators – a no-no at competitions.
Bree Mullaghan is one of 10 Okotoks area internationally-competitive Irish dancers preparing to create noise in a thunderous, high-energy show at the Rotary Performing Arts Centre March 16 at 3 p.m. and 7 p.m.
The Backbeat Irish Dancers are offering a Riverdance experience in celebration of St. Patrick’s Day.
“It’s definitely more showy than the competitions,” said Mullaghan, who ranked fourth in the Western Canada Championships last fall. “We’re allowed to use our arms and interact with the audience more with our facial expressions whereas you would never see that in a competition. When you’re competing you don’t use your arms at all, it’s really just about what your feet are doing. We’re judged on an athletic level.”
The 18-year-old dancer, who began Irish dancing at the age of five, said it’s a combination of tap and ballet movements.
“It’s lots of legwork,” she said. “We do kicks, jumps and tap our toes against the ground and stomp our feet.”
Mullaghan was introduced to Irish dance while watching a performance at Heritage Park in Calgary with her family at the age of three.
“It’s the first time in my life I sat still for longer than two minutes,” she said with a laugh.
Since enrolling in Irish dance, Mullaghan has never gotten tired of it.
“I love the standard you have to hold yourself to, to remain in shape and stay with the choreography changes,” she said. “I have so much fun doing it. It’s my passion.”
In addition to competing in the North American Championships for the eighth time this summer, Mullaghan will audition for Riverdance with the hope of traveling the world with the theatrical show of Irish music and dance.
Mullaghan is among the cast of talented dancers in Ali Hampshire’s Possak Hampshire Irish Dance Academy in Okotoks.
“These dancers all placed in the top 10 in western Canada and top 20 in the world,” said Hampshire, artistic director of Backbeat Irish Dancers. “They’re a very high level group.”
Hampshire said the audience can expect a lot of fast footwork and a fast-pace pulse-pounding beat throughout the performance.
“It’s a very athletic dance form,” she said. “These dancers train like athletes to be able to perform these complex movements. You’ll see some of the dances they would do in competition and some choreographed showpieces they do as a group.”
The Backbeat Irish Dancers offered a sneak peek of their talent with a 15-minute dance before Edmonton quintet Celtic performs at the RPAC on March 9.
Tickets to see the Backbeat Irish Dancers perform cost $15 and can be purchased by contacting Ali Hampshire at possakhampshire.com or 403-700-4177. Proceeds help support travel costs for the dancers to compete in the North American and World Irish Dance Championships.
