I wast watching a Syracuse Basketball game a few days ago and was inspired from a comment by one of the announcers.  It was in the final minutes of the game and we needed every point we could get. One of our players with a very low percentage was fouled. As he stepped up to the line you could practically hear the crowd all crossing their fingers.  As he was stepping up to the line the announcer said that for the past few weeks Coach Boeheim kept this player after practice to work on his foul shots. He had to make 100 shots before Boeheim would let him leave the gym.The player calmly dribbled the ball a few times, focused on the hoop, and made both his shots- which in turn won us the game.  This really got me thinking about how setting goals like that not only increase an athlete's accuracy, but also boosts their confidence. In the case of this particular game, I think it was both that helped SU earn the winning points. The more I thought about it, the more I wanted to use this coaching strategy to inspire our dancers at Dunleavy.

We are challenging our students this week over Spring  Break to put on their hard shoes and get 100 clicks for 5 consecutive days. Not only will this practice help increase their accuracy when they step out onto the stage, but it will also boost their confidence. Most of our hard shoe steps have only 4 or 5 clicks in them- once they've achieved the 500 Click Challenge this will seem like a piece of cake!

I am still getting caught up after a very busy Thanksgiving in Philadelphia and I am reflecting on so many things we have to be thankful for. Our school is comprised of some of the most amazing people I have ever met in my life. Traveling out of state with 17 dancers and their families left me with so many incredible memories to cherish. I want to share with you some of my favorite experiences that truly touched me while we were at the Oireachtas.

One of our teams of 12-year olds were sharing their Thanksgiving meal together in their hotel room and realized they had an abundance of food left over. Although the girls had only been in the city for a few hours they had recognized the incredible need for acts of charity and wanted to respond in a positive way. They wrapped up individual meals with paper plates and tin foil and stepped outside onto the streets of downtown Philadelphia to hand out food to the hungry. 

After the competitions ended on Saturday we had students and parents clean and transform the ballroom to to help Fr. Brian (co-founder of Dunleavy) with Saturday night mass. It was such a special experience that we were able to share together to start Advent. 

The level of sportsmanship that I witnessed from our dancers was incredibly moving. Every time one of our girls performed there was a resounding cheer in the ballroom, louder and longer than all the others. Another teacher commented how much of a presence we have and was astounded to learn that we were one of the smallest schools represented at the Oireachtas yet we had the loudest and most visible presence. But that's Dunleavy, we support each other in such a strong way. There was another teacher that commented on how excited one of my students looked at the award ceremony, the dancer was jumping up and down and grinning ear to ear with pure and genuine happiness. They were really taken back when I told them she wasn't even in that competition, that she was cheering for a classmate. All weekend we had dancers literally running to different ballrooms to support their classmates, we even had a dancer who was not competing drive down with her mom to watch her classmates. Another student who wasn't dancing woke up at 5:00am every morning to help her classmates prepare with wigs and makeup for their early competition. I am always so impressed by the level of sportsmanship our dancers show to each other. The community these girls have created is so powerful it brought me to tears on multiple occasions. Dunleavy truly is a community I am honored to call my own.

Want to nourish your child's love for Irish dance? Here's our top 10 ideas for this Christmas!

10) Yoga Mat- A yoga mat can mean all the difference in making stretching more enjoyable at home. You can pick one up at Target for under $10, but my favorite is made by Lulu Lemon.

9) Lauren Early's Book- Reaching New Heights by Irish dancer and personal trainer. Lauren provides a step-by-step  strength and conditioning guide for specifically improving performance for competitive Irish dance. Some other good books include; The Little Book of Inspiration for Irish Dancers by Sean Connolly, Parade of Champions by Elise Wright, and the Liffey Rivers series by Brenna Briggs. 

8) Dunleavy Spiritwear- Show your Dunleavy pride in our cozy navy hoodies and sweatpants! Orders need to be in by Monday, November 28th to be in before Christmas. 

7) Practice Sneakers- With practice sneakers, your dancer can jig everywhere! Rutherford Shoes offers a variety of brands and styles.

6) Dance Music- Expanding your music library is a great way to pump up your dancer's practice. Some of my favorite albums that came out this year include; Feis Music 3 by Sean O'Brien, Feis Machine 2 by Stephen Carolan, Feis Tunes 2 by Cormac O'Sé and Brian O'Sullivan is full of great music just for beginners!

5) Foam Roller- Keep your muscles long for improved flexibility for dancing by using a foam roller. My favorite company is The Trigger Point. 

4) Subscription to IDM- Your dancer will look forward to each month with a subscription to Irish Dancing Magazine. 

3) The ProStretch is phenomenal for stretching  the calves and preventing injury.
 
2) Jig the Movie- Follow the story of dancers gearing up for, and competing at the World Championships in Jig. Other great movies to keep your Irish dancer entertained include; Riverdance, Lord of the Dance, Dancing on Dangerous Ground, and Heartbeat of Home. 

1) Camps at Dunleavy- What better gift for your Irish dancer than more Irish dance!? Register your dancer for one of our Team Camps online at the Dunleavy store, and we will send you a certificate you can wrap and put under the tree!  Stop by our Christmas Party on Sunday, December 11th from 12:00-2:00 for some other great gift opportunities. ​

​What an incredible showing we had at the Rochester Feis!! We had 68 dancers registered, which made us the largest school in attendance, WOW! Thank you everyone for all the work you put in before the feis to make this event stress-free and enjoyable. The benefit our dancers gain from the preparations you make is immeasurable. I loved seeing our class assistants working with our beginners and our SK moms and dads helping with curlers and stage schedules. We are a community full of so many wonderful people, thank you for making Dunleavy so great! And a huge thank you to the Rochester Feis Committee for putting on this fantastic event!

​Dunleavy made it into the finalist for City Newspaper's Best of Rochester!!!

This is such an honor to be among so many other local legends. Dunleavy was voted the "Best Local Dance Company" along with Garth Fagan, Rochester City Ballet, and Sirens and Stilettos. Dunleavy is currently the only Irish organization on the Rochester's Best, it would be such a great milestone for the Irish community for Dunleavy to win! I believe we can do it, but we need your vote!

Vote now!
Voting ends October 14th at 5:00pm. You can vote on multiple devices (phone, laptop, tablet, etc.) and you can cast vote again every 24 hours. We can do it, we can win this!!

Click this link, then click on the red text beneath the image to be taken to the online poll. 

There are 100 categories, however you only need to vote for 40 for your vote to count. Don't forget to vote for Delaney from Monaghan's mom and the Black Button Distillery for #44 :) You will find Dunleavy on question #81.

Thank you for your support! 
Cast your vote, fingers crossed, and may the luck of the Irish be with us!!

Welcome new students! 
Start with Dunleavy at two months for the price of one!

​Register HERE

September & October
​Thursdays 4:00-4:45
Two months tuition on sale for $60

​Traditionally a feis was a festival involving a culmination of cultural arts. Today at a feis we focus primarily on the dancing, but there is still categories for baking, music, needlepoint, art, and song. Dancers from many different schools come together and dance to live music. They receive comments from an adjudicator on how to improve their dancing, and perhaps even win a medal!

I remember gazing out the car window on the lookout for other "feisheads" on the highway in anticipation as we drove to the feis with my sisters when I was a little girl. They were quick to spot of course, because the curlers at the time only came in bright neon colors. We would get really excited to see the dancers from other schools performing different steps incorporating moves we had never seen before. 

In Irish dancing it is easy to get caught up into your own bubble because the majority of our time is spent at the studio where there is so much to focus on. Don't get me wrong, it's a nice bubble, I love our studio and the people who fill it! But one of the biggest reasons I enjoy attending a feis is because I get to see dancers from other schools and the fruits of their labor. It reminds me that Irish dancing is a powerful, flowing river that we have the honor of stepping into. It has been going on long before I was born, and will continue on long after I am gone. Witnessing the tradition come alive is incredibly moving.