Love of Irish dancing passes down through generations

The best businesses are inspired by passion – like Marie Mahon’s, whose love for Irish dancing was so strong that she has dedicated her life to introducing children to the wonderful skill.

Marie – nee Gavin – has been the driving force behind the Gavin School of Dancing, since she founded it back in 1989.

BY DAVID CONNORS

The school is now one of the most recognised and respected in South Galway – and after 25 years in existence, the academy continues to go from strength-to-strength.

Marie began dancing in England at the tender age of three when her mother purchased her first dance shoes. Her family moved to Peterswell when she was eleven, and her dancing continued from there.

In 1991, she undertook her T.C.R.G. examination with An Comhdháil (Congress of Irish Dance Teachers) and became a qualified teacher.

It was at this point the Gavin School of Irish Dancing was founded and began in the Joe Cooley Hall in Peterswell, now expanded to classes in Gort, Ardrahan, Kilbeacanty and recently Labane.

And it’s really within the last twelve years that Marie’s hard work has reaped reward.

“We won the All-Ireland’s back in 2003, in Ennis, in the freestyle championship and it was a really proud moment. It was a creation called Spirit of Celtic Hope,” she admits.

To invent these original dance creations takes a lot of time. “You have to get ideas, sit down with a pen and paper and make up a story, then come up with music and steps to show your story as you’re going. It is time consuming, it takes a lot of hours and a lot of practice,” she says.

And now that the school is so well established, former students are now coming through her school to become teachers themselves.

“April Dooley and Nessa Timlin have both qualified and this year my own daughter Diana is graduating in August, so I have three teachers produced school to date,” she says with pride.

And with the qualification of April and Diana, the school became a multi- teacher Academy now known as the Gavin Dance Academy.

April’s reason for moving onto the teaching side was simple – “to give back some of what I’ve learned and help children learn and progress over the years to come.”

And what she has learned is not to be sneezed at – because over the years, she has accumulated several Connacht titles, winning a gold medal as part of a team dance in the All Irelands and gold for a jig solo at 15.

Before undertaking her T.C.R.G. examination, her daughter Diana graduated with an honours degree in Business with Event Management from the Limerick Institute of Technology.

With the school regularly organising dancing events it was with an eye at ensuring the school’s name stays alive for quite a long time.

“I look forward to the growth and development of the academy. Also to the fantastic opportunities that Irish Dance has to offer, be it success at a competitive level, a chance to travel the world with a show or simply to make lifelong friendship from performing within the community,” Diana said.

The Academy caters for both boys and girls and currently boasts an impressive fourteen boys in its ranks.

“They’re loving it; they’re enjoying it and I think a lot of them are friends so they are sticking together. If you can get a few boys from the one area they will all be friends. It’s cool to be a male dancer,” says Marie,

The academy has further plans to expand and is looking at the possibility broadening the number of National Schools from the coming September.

The idea is to call to the schools and teach the pupils Irish dancing for one-two hours a week which would provide an excellent chance for students who might be interested in Irish dancing.

■ For more information on this or class enquires contact Marie Mahon on (087) 2468655, April Dooley on (086) 039489 or Diana Mahon on (087) 2140347.