Competitive Irish Dance : Art, Sport, Duty

by Hall, Frank

• ISBN13: 9780981492421
• ISBN10: 0981492428
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2009-09-10
• Publisher: Univ of Wisconsin Pr

Summary

What happens when you put an expressive form in a competitive frame? This question motivates Frank Hallrs"s study of competitive Irish stepdancing. He examines this dance tradition-from the organization of competitions to the movement of dancersrs" bodies-in relation to themes of authority, authenticity, and control. Irish stepdancing, known for many decades primarily in ethnic enclaves, expanded tremendously asRiverdanceand other shows took this dance form to new performance contexts on the world stage. In describing and analyzing the history and development of competitive stepdancing in Ireland, the United States, and beyond, Hall reveals the issues, forces, and values that entwine all participants, including competition organizers, judges, dancers, parents, and teachers. Investigating the process of teaching and learning the movement and analyzing its stage performance, he elucidates the syntactic and semantic dimensions of Irish dancing as a body language.

Author Biography

Frank Hall holds a Ph.D. in anthropology from Indiana University. He is an Irish musician living in County Galway, Ireland, where he is active in community service with the Kinvara Area Music Collective (KAM).

Table of Contents

Illustrations	p. ix
Preface	p. xi
Acknowledgments	p. xv
Introduction	p. 1
Authority: Anthropology and Ireland	p. 6
Authenticity: Ireland and Dancing	p. 8
Control: Anthropology and Dancing	p. 11
Posture in Irish Dancing	p. 13
Myths	p. 15
Competitions	p. 17
Manners	p. 19
Dancing Masters	p. 20
The (In)Subordination of Dancing	p. 23
Dancing as National Expression	p. 27
Nationalism and the Politics of Culture	p. 27
Irish Dancing: A New Genre with Claims to Antiquity	p. 30
Irish Dancing Becomes an Institution	p. 35
Breakaway Organizations	p. 38
The Modern Competitive Model	p. 40
Dance as Competition	p. 43
Irish Dancing Commission Members	p. 46
The Dance School	p. 49
Teachers	p. 49
Dancers (and their Parents)	p. 50
The Transfer Rule	p. 55
Competition and Choreography	p. 57
Adjudicators	p. 58
Costume and Dancing	p. 61
Social Interpretation of Adjudicators' Results	p. 64
Learning a Body Language	p. 69
Lessons	p. 70
First Moves, First Steps	p. 71
Multiple Functions of Verbal Cues	p. 73
Style: How Steps are Performed	p. 78
Class Atmosphere and Work Ethic	p. 84
The Class Feis	p. 86
Values: Physical and Social	p. 88
Creativity, Form, and Identity	p. 93
Analysis of Two Slip Jigs: Beginner's and Champion's	p. 94
Body Movement	p. 94
Time: Rhythmic Stress	p. 97
Space	p. 101
Play with Form	p. 104
Creativity and Identity	p. 105
Toe Stands	p. 105
Heel Clicks	p. 108
The Butterfly	p. 110
Poetics of Movement	p. 111
Riverdance: Beyond Nationalism	p. 113
The Century of Irish Dance	p. 113
Riverdance	p. 118
International Participation	p. 119
Cult of the Individual and the Appeal of Riverdance	p. 121
Changes and Continuity	p. 125
Online Appendix	p. 129
Notes	p. 131
Works Cited	p. 141
Index	p. 149
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