Noelle Cavanaugh
Director and teacher
Noelle teaches the feis preparation class and helps each dancer decide which events, if any, to go to.
Novice and up
Feis preparation
A weekly hard shoe class for dancers who choose to go to a feis, with the teacher's help.
A feis is a day of Irish dance events, held in halls around New England, mostly in spring with a few in the fall. Going is the dancer's decision, made with the family and the teacher. This class works on dancing a whole step cleanly and on what a feis day is like.
At a glance
Thursday evenings, an hour
Classes of up to 10 dancers
Hard shoes
A class
What feis preparation is like
A little more focused, still friendly.
- 01
Step 1: Warm-up
Light jumps and a walk through the hall, with the music on.
- 02
Step 2: Technique
One step, danced slowly and then at the music's pace.
- 03
Step 3: Whole dances
A jig or a hornpipe from start to finish.
- 04
Step 4: Feis day
What happens on the day, where to stand and what to bring.
- 05
Step 5: A quiet finish
A slow cool-down and a word with the teacher.
Good to know
Clothing, class size and level
What to wear and bring
Practice clothes, hard shoes and hair tied back. A solo dress is only for a dancer who wants one, and never needed to join the class.
Class length and size
Classes of up to 10 dancers, an hour a week. Entries and travel to a feis are the family's own.
Level and moving up
Novice and above. The teacher decides when a dancer joins, and every dancer chooses which events to go to.
See the levels
Your teacher
Noelle teaches feis preparation
Come and dance a class with us
Every new dancer starts with the intro workshop and a placement visit. Choose a time and we will tell you what to wear.