Jennifer Bird with dancers from the Blackbird Academy of Dance at Irish dance exams last week. Photo: Supplied.
As the Illawarra prepares to don its greenest attire and raise a pint in honour of St Patrick’s Day on Monday (17 March), one Illawarra institution is gearing up to showcase the rich cultural dance traditions of the “Emerald Isle”.
For more than two decades, the Blackbird Academy of Irish Dance in Warilla has been captivating audiences with its energetic performances and deep connection to Ireland’s storied past.
Founded by Jennifer Bird in 2001, among the annual traditions for her 27 students was to perform at Dicey Rileys Hotel in Wollongong and the Sydney St Patrick’s Day Parade and Festival in Sydney each March.
Although, Jennifer jokes that everyone suddenly feels they have acquired the skills of Irish dancing on St Paddy’s Day.
“You always get somebody coming up to you saying ‘Oh, my mother was Irish’, or ‘I’m Irish,” she said.
“It’s a lovely day to celebrate all things Irish and we get to showcase what we love.
“And everybody’s an Irish dancer on St Paddy’s Day,” she said, laughing.
For Jennifer and many of the students who have family links to Ireland, it’s a chance to connect with their heritage and inspire others to embrace the joy of Irish dance.
“It teaches the girls discipline, and it teaches them teamwork because it’s not all solo work,” she said.
“It’s like a type of ballet because we’ve got soft shoes, but then we also have hard shoes, which you use to do tap dancing.”
She said along with the two styles of shoes to help them perform intricate footwork and choreography, the students also wore bespoke costumes, adorned with Celtic designs once linked to a family’s heritage and sparkling crystals to help them stand out on the big competition stages.
Jennifer, who has Irish ancestry, began Irish dancing at school in Sydney in the 70s and has continued with the dance style right through to now having a deep involvement in the governing body of Irish dancing in Dublin.
During the past two decades, she has also made it her mission to pass down the history and techniques of Irish dance to the next generation, like the early dance masters once did.
“Irish dancing started back in the 1930s in Ireland as a form of entertainment,” she said.
“There were a few dance masters that used to tour around and teach people steps.
“I was very lucky in my career as a dancer myself. I used to perform with the Irish Drovers and the fiddle player in the Irish Drovers was a man called Sean Gilroy, and he actually brought Irish dancing out from Ireland to Australia.
“He founded the Australian Irish Dancing Association, which I’m now president of. It’s come full circle.”
Jennifer said Irish dancing still told the stories of those dance masters, such as Miss Brown’s Fancy – a dance about one of the first women to become a dance master.
“It teaches all sorts of stories like the Kilkenny Races, so when you’re dancing you’re actually depicting a very historical Irish story,” she said.
“The academy is the Blackbird of Irish Dance, and The Blackbird is one of the traditional dances that was taught by one of those dance masters.
“So it’s got that nice cultural and traditional side as well.”
She said often students started dancing with her because of their own Irish heritage, but once they learned a few dances they became hooked.
“As they go up the levels, it’s no different to school – they get enjoyment out of mastering quite intricate steps,” she said.
Jennifer said they travelled around Sydney and Australia for competitions and displays, with the goal to eventually get them to Ireland to dance.
She said in the past her dancers had won the European Championships in Dubai and made it through to the World Irish Dance Championships in Dublin, which is where she will be a volunteer in three weeks’ time.
Blackbird Academy of Irish Dance will perform at Dicey Rileys Hotel in Crown St, Wollongong throughout the day on Monday (17 March).
Loading ...
