Irish dance competition moves to the Chevy Centre

Canfield’s Lauren
Kepley is ranked 10th in North America.

By GUY D’ASTOLFO

VINDICATOR ENTERTAINMENT WRITER

YOUNGSTOWN — About 800 Irish dancers from across the Midwest and Canada will converge on Chevrolet Centre Sunday, where they will pound the floors of eight stages at the 39th annual Youngstown Feis.

This will be the first year that the Feis (Gaelic for "dance competition") will be held in the downtown arena, a move made necessary by the event’s growth.

The Feis is sponsored by Burke School of Irish Dance. The dancers range in age from 4 to 20 and will be in full traditional costume. They will compete according to their age group and/or skill level by dancing to live music before judges, explained Jill Mogg, president of the Feis.

History

“The Feis originated at the Gaelic Society grounds in North Lima and was later moved to the Holiday Inn Metroplex in Liberty, where it stayed until 2000. At that time, the ever-expanding Feis was moved to the Eastwood Expo Center in Niles.

“It was our intention to move the Youngstown Feis back to Youngstown, but there wasn’t a facility large enough to house the event,” said Mogg. “In 2006, the Feis moved to Youngstown State University and this year we are at Chevrolet Centre, where we hope to stay.”

The 5,700-seat arena will be more than adequate to hold the stages and the several thousand spectators who are expected to attend.

The dancers who win are automatically moved up to the next skill level.

Competitor

Lauren Kepley, 15, a sophomore at Canfield High School, will compete at Sunday’s Feis. The student of the Burke School of Irish Dance is currently ranked 10th in North America.

Kepley started dancing when she was 4 when her grandmother signed her up for dance lessons as a way to teach her about her Irish heritage.

In April, Kepley will compete at the world Irish Dance Competition in Ireland — her fourth appearance.
“I really like seeing the countryside,” Kepley said about her trips to Ireland. “The big cities of Dublin, Cork and Belfast are okay, but I really like touring the smaller, more quaint, towns. On our last trip, we went to the Aran Islands and Dingle. They seem to be more like the Ireland I picture in my mind.”

Kepley said it is an honor to be taught by Theresa “Tessie” Burke, founder of Burke School of Irish Dance, which has been in Youngstown for 45 years. “She is so well respected in the world of Irish dance,” said Kepley.

Burke resides in Cleveland, but visits Youngstown several days each week. She also has schools in Cleveland and Pittsburgh.