The following is a series of photos from Irish dances around Belfast on a number of occasions.
Street Dance Céilí
This was a one-time-only, all-out céilí in the middle of the pedestrian street outside of the Duke of York, a busy pub in Belfast's city center. Céilí dancing is not as intricate as set dancing (where four sets of couples dance in formation together) and is similar to the square dance that took place outside the Lentz house at my high school graduation open house. Everyone joined in. I, since I held a Guinness in one hand and my camera in the other, did not.
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| The line of dancers went all the way down the street |
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| Live musicians, of course! |
Set Dancing in Madden's Pub
This occurred on a weekly basis during the spring. Madden's is a tiny pub, so small that dancers' elbows brush the bar and the walls and the bystanders. We were always upstairs. The downstairs was even smaller, and you could only get in if they let you in when you rang the buzzer--a throwback to more violent times when Madden's wasn't the safest place to be and upstairs was better than downstairs.
This occurred on a weekly basis during the spring. Madden's is a tiny pub, so small that dancers' elbows brush the bar and the walls and the bystanders. We were always upstairs. The downstairs was even smaller, and you could only get in if they let you in when you rang the buzzer--a throwback to more violent times when Madden's wasn't the safest place to be and upstairs was better than downstairs.
Céilí Dance at Chaplaincy Formal
The Catholic Chaplaincy has a formal dinner and dance every year. Well, the dinner is formal. The dancing was a disco preceded by céilí dancing. Of course. There's a strong tie between Irish cultural pasttimes and the Catholic community here. In fact, I remember on St. Patrick's Day at an ecumenical event attended by the Presbyterian Chaplaincy, the Church of Ireland Chaplaincy and the Methodist Chaplaincy that the decision to have a céilí afterwards meant that the Catholic Chaplaincy had to instruct everyone else at the event how to céilí dance. Catholics are brought up attending all manner of Irish cultural events with Irish activities. Pretty much nobody else is....
Somebody took photos of me during the céilí. I conveniently hid my camera during the disco.
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| Céilí dancing involves lots of circles...but if you ask my mother, or lived on my street, you'll know that I love going in circles! Hence the smile on my face! |
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| And swing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! |
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