18-03-2025
Dancers bring Irish energy to local events
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio (WKBN) — A cherished tradition of St. Patrick's Day is an Irish dance.
The steps of an Irish dance require high energy. Dancers need rhythm, visualization and practice for a performance to come together.
'Super hard. It's really hard,' said dancer Jocelyn Mehle. 'I can't even like describe it. It's insane.'
Dancers with The Burke School of Irish Dance had a number of performances on St. Patrick's Day to keep the party crowd in the spirit. Dancing in hard shoes, you can hear the rhythm as they make beats on the floor. It goes along with the music and even inspires people to clap along.
'I think people just are very entertained with how they see it and how they can hear us dancing,' said dance teacher Mara Wilson.
The Burke School has been teaching Irish dancing in the Cornersburg section of Youngstown since 1965. The oldest dancer was 21, and the youngest was four and a half. But you could start seeing younger dancers very soon.
'Because we start so young and we're going to actually have a new class for like, 2-year-olds to start learning, like the music and stuff. I think that'll help us grow our school even more,' Wilson said.
The irish dance school has around 40 kids dancing. The green season of St. Patrick's Day is important, but some of them are stepping up to the competition.
Three dancers have qualified for the world championship. Only 1% make it to that level.
Music is part of the Irish identity. The folk songs tell stories. The dancing goes with them, to enhance the experience.
'It's so fun to watch,' Mehle said. 'The footwork is amazing. I think people like the rhythm a lot, how the music is and how like the rhythm is, and you can clap along to it. I think it's really fun to watch.'
The group has a 6:30 p.m. performance at Birdfish and a 9:30 p.m. dance at Youngstown Maennerchor. Those are part of their five performances on Monday to share the Irish 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
