Petaluma’s Irish dancers stepping up on St. Patrick’s Day

After this winter heavy rains, the hills around Petaluma have been transformed into a bright, vibrant green.

On Friday, St. Patrick’s Day, the Petaluma’s Veterans Building will be even greener, as the cavernous hall fills with holiday-attired celebrants eager to catch the big, annual “Luck of the Irish Dance Show,” presented by Fidelma Keenan and her students at the Keenan Irish Dance School.

“Everyone’s Irish on St. Patrick’s Day,” said Keenan, noting that the popular show annually draws hundreds to one of Petaluma’s largest public performance spaces.

According to Keenan, whose been teaching Irish dancing in Sonoma County for 30 years, this year’s show will feature 22 dancers, ranging in age from 7 to 17.

In a series of solo, duo and group numbers, they will showcase an array of Irish dance styles and traditions, from soft-shoe to Ceilidh to hard-shoe — the latter often referred to as Riverdance style.

“We’ve been preparing for the last couple of months,” she said. “There are certain dances that the dancers practice all year round, because we use them when they go our to compete, but then we zone into the St. Patrick’s event for the last couple of months before the show.”

The show will include what Keenan calls “story-based dancing themes,” including a segment titled “Trip to the Cottage,” in which a celebration is being held, neighbors are invited, and the villagers ultimately gather at the cottage for the big party.

“Some of the moves are very intricate, and really cool to look at,“ Keenan said.

The dancers wear the school’s traditional red-and-white costumes, with the occasional themed attire, such as green skirts with shamrocks, on display in the show’s “Shamrock Reel” segment. In a segment danced to the tune “Nancy Mulligan,” the performers where red-and-green or black-and-green costumes.

With so many different options available to young people seeking dance instruction — ballet, tap, modern dance, an array of folk dance options — one would assume that if a student chooses to attend the Keenan School of Irish Dance, they have been exposed to the excitement and energy of the dance style and are eager to learn it.

“There are so many reasons, but yes, if a student has the heritage, if their family comes from an Irish background, they might be attracted to Irish dancing because they are familiar with it and are interested in the culture,” Keenan said. “Though, obviously, you don’t have to be Irish to be interested in Irish dancing. But what I’ve found is that they are drawn to the fast movement and the style, especially in the hard shoes.”

In Irish dancing, there is also a solo style using soft shoes, often performing reels and jigs. Then there are the “open set” dances, in which students can advance to the championship level, with 30 different “open set” dances that can be used in competition.

“Beginning dancers love to mimic the hard shoes,” she said, “with fast feet, lots of energy, and they can hear themselves dance, which is really exciting for them.

“I start them off in soft shoes, so they can learn the basic movements, the counts, the timing and the music before they can advance into the hard shoes. Once they do that it’s ‘game on,’ and if they practice hard and start to advance, they can move up pretty fast.”

Many of Keenan’s students do rise to the competition level, and she frequently travels with her dancers to various competitions, which take place at all levels of age and ability.

On March 25 and 26, an Irish dance competition will be held at the Irish Cultural Center in San Francisco, and in July, the North American Irish Dance Competition will be held in Tennessee.

“I’m taking a team to the nationals in Nashville this year,” Keenan said. “Then there’s a competition in Arizona at the end of the year. That qualifies you for the world competition, which is our Olympics. It’s where you are crowned the best in the world. It’s a big thing.”

But for now, the focus is on St. Patrick’s Day.

For dancers who do so many out-of-town events, it is a special occasion for Keenan’s students — one show each year where they can perform in front of friends, family and the wider community.

“We have a strong group of dancers,” Keenan said.

“This is their chance to show what they’ve been working so hard on. And what’s nice about these yearly recitals is also seeing how the beginners get their first chance to dance in front of people. Ideally, if they stay involved with Irish dancing, in a year or two they will be competing with the others all over the country.”