St. Patrick's Day Irish Dance!

Robert Black, originally from Long Island, New York, traces his introduction to Irish Dance to his dad who brought home a recording of Riverdance performed at Radio City Music Hall, a hallmark of the Irish renaissance of the 1990's. He began training at age three in the Hunt School before transferring to the An Rince (Rink-a) Mor School, competing as a solo dancer under Peggy White until age 16. After retiring from solo competition, Robert continued dancing in shows and was a member of the Notre Dame/Saint Mary's Irish Dance team, winning three All Ireland Championships in ceili dancing during his coaching tenure. Since moving to Ireland, Robert has pursued residencies with the Willie Clancy and South Sligo Summer Schools, and studied under Jean and Cara Butler, with whom he shares a common artistic ancestor in Jerry Mulvihill. Robert currently focuses on the social dances, namely ceili and set dancing, that still hold an important place in the dance halls of rural Ireland.

Originally published at internationalerg.nd.edu.