Surrey, B.C.-based dance studio sends Irish dancers to World Championships

A troupe of young dancers from a Surrey, B.C.-based Irish dance studio is heading to the World Irish Dancing Championships in Montreal later this year.

Steel School of Irish Dance, which runs dance classes in South Surrey and White Rock, is sending nine students to the competition after they qualified through Canada's national competition.

More than 6,000 participants will be at the championships, according to a statement from Tourisme Montréal. The event is typically held in Ireland and the U.K.

"This is like the Olympics of Irish dancing," said Megan Largy, a dance instructor at the Steel School.

"Some of these dancers have been dancing since they were three, four years old and they are at the studio multiple days a week."

The dancers who qualified range from 10 years old to the oldest, Brianna Kraft, who is 22.

"When I found out that I qualified, I was just ecstatic," Kraft told CBC News.

"I've had a lot of injuries in the last couple of years and it's been a little bit uncertain of whether or not I would be able to keep competing or keep dancing at all."

The world championships will be held at the Montreal Convention Centre from April 2 to 9.

Multiple styles of dance

Irish dancing is a form of traditional dance popularized by theatrical productions like Riverdance.

"Irish dancing is very energetic, it's very demanding on the cardiovascular system," Largy said. "It's so high-energy and so demanding of that, but it's so much fun because of it."

The instructor says Riverdance indirectly helped kick off her career — her grandfather watched the production and told Largy's mother about it, which led to her joining the Steel School, founded in 1981.

"That's where I started my dancing career, and fell in love with Irish dancing and fell in love with the dance school and the community," she said.

Largy says there are many styles of the dance, but there are two broad distinctions — soft shoe and hard shoe dancing.

Soft shoe dancing is more ballet-like, according to Largy, and more "bouncy," while hard shoe dancing is more rhythmic and similar to tap dancing.

"When you see soft shoe dancing, you'll get to see more of the dancers' artistic side come out," she said.

At the world championships, Steel is set to put on a group performance of soft shoe dancing with the youngest dancers. One of them is 10-year-old London Hardychuk.

"I'm looking forward to dancing on the big stage and going in front of everyone and just doing it with my friends," she said.

Pageantry and costume

Irish dancing, especially at large performances, involves the use of elaborate costumes and wigs.

Kraft says she's used to putting on the giant wigs since she was six.

"It's just natural for me now," she said. "You go to a competition, then you go to the grocery store and everyone's staring at you and that's just normal."

The 22-year-old says the costumes have to be tailor-made for individual dancers, often all the way from Ireland.

"There's no age limit in Irish dance for competing. If my body could handle it, I could keep competing till I was 100," she said.

"But probably I will retire from competing soon and then likely get my teaching certification.

"Irish dance will always be part of my life."