Winter/Spring 2025 Classes

register now for winter/spring 2025

2024 - 25 Calendar

Sept 9 - Dec 10 Fall Semester
Oct 14 - 15 No Class
Nov 25 - 26 No Class

Jan 6 - May 20 Winter/Spring Semester
Jan 20 - 21 No Class
Feb 17 - 18 No Class
Mar 4 No Class
Mar 17 No Class
Apr 21 - 22 No Class

June 3 - 24 Summer Workshop Series

Semester Classes

Beginners

Old-Style Irish Step Dance (beginning/continuing) for adults - Mon 6:00

Traditional Irish dance basics and beyond in an older, traditional style. Ranging from beautifully simple to intricate, these steps are danced low to the ground and feature rhythms that closely match the music. Learn the 3s and 7s and solo hardshoe jigs, reels, and hornpipes. In the last 20 minutes, we’ll also dance social sets/céilís with the continuing class! We will begin with a thorough warmup, focusing on developing fluidity and musicality, and enjoy great traditional Irish music. Co-taught with Kara Howgate-Mello.

All backgrounds welcome, no experience required. This class offers steps at varying difficulties.
Shoes: Flat, hard-soled shoes.

New beginner/continuing
Mondays 6:00 - 7:00 pm, St John’s Arlington

Irish Step Dance (beginning/adv beginning) for adults - Tues 5:30

Traditional Irish dance from the basics for beginners and continuing dancers in a more contemporary, lifted style. Learn the 3s and 7s and solo soft shoe jigs, reels, and slip jigs. In the last 20 minutes, we’ll also dance social sets/céilís as well as older-style hard shoe repertoire with the intermediate class! We will begin with a thorough warmup, focusing on developing fluidity and musicality, and enjoy great traditional Irish music.

All backgrounds welcome, no experience required. This class offers steps at varying difficulties.
Shoes: ghillies or ballet shoes; and flat hard-soled shoes such as oxfords, or step dancing hard shoes.

New beginner/advanced beginner
Tuesdays 5:30 - 6:30 pm, First Church Cambridge

Step Dancing

Continuing Irish Step Dance for adults - Mon 6:40

Traditional Irish dance, covering a whole range of contemporary & older soft shoe, hard shoe, and solo set dances. In the first 20 minutes, we’ll dance old-style repertoire and sets/céilís with the beginner class.

Continuing for dancers with 2+ years of soft shoe experience and some hard shoe experience
Mondays 6:40 - 7:55 pm, St John’s Arlington

Intermediate Irish Step Dance for adults - Tues 6:10

Traditional Irish dance, covering a whole range of contemporary & older soft shoe, hard shoe, and solo set dances. In the first 20 minutes, we’ll dance old-style repertoire and sets/céilís with the beginner class.

Intermediate
Tuesdays 6:10 - 7:30 pm, First Church Cambridge

Advanced Irish Step Dance Technique for adults - Mon 8:00

Traditional, contemporary-style Irish step dance, for dancers with extensive experience who are interested in finessing technique on a deeper level, finding more ease of movement, exploring musicality, and continuing to train as adults at a high level. Class covers challenging, athletic soft shoe and hard shoe material. We will begin with a thorough warmup and get a good workout through conditioning and technique drills.

Fast Intermediate/Advanced
Mondays 8:00 - 9:00 pm, St John’s Arlington

Lower-impact Irish Step Dance (intermediate/advanced) for adults - Tues 7:40

A class for experienced step dancers who want a more gentle practice alongside plenty of challenge in the material! We’ll focus especially on older-style hard shoe repertoire that lends itself to being danced lower to the ground, solo sets, and social dances. As always, a thorough warmup, and in this class, a relaxed pace. Flat, hard-soled shoes recommended.

Intermediate/Advanced
Tuesdays 7:40 - 8:40 pm, First Church Cambridge

Sean-nós Dancing

Lunchtime Sean-Nós Irish Dance (continuing) for adults - Mon noon

with live music
A lunchtime sean-nós Irish dance break! Enjoy great traditional music and play with rhythms in your feet. We’ll play with basic steps to respond to the music and express the melody and phrases. Develop fluidity and fine-tune your ear, build steps and variations, and make them your own in a supportive atmosphere.

Open to dancers with some previous sean-nós, step, or other percussive dance experience, as well as musicians.

Mondays noon - 1:00 pm, Alton Street Dance Arlington

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Private Lessons

Are you interested in learning a specific dance? Practicing your technique? Getting supportive feedback to bring your dancing to the next level? I offer private and small group lessons.

Focus on technique, steps, improvisation — step dancing, old style steps, sean-nós dance. Approaches I love most include:
- working through tricky spots in steps by creating ease and efficiency in movement
- making improv accessible and less scary, and making the movements feel like your own
- honing musicality

Please email mcgowanirishdance@gmail.com with your interest. Lessons are $40/30 min or $65/50 min, plus studio rental.

Locations

St John’s Arlington
74 Pleasant St., Arlington, MA
free street parking
near 67, 77, 350 bus

Alton Street Dance Arlington
348 Mass Ave, Arlington, MA
free street parking
near 67, 77, 350 bus

First Church Cambridge
11 Garden St., Harvard Square, Cambridge, MA
meter street parking
Harvard Square red line & buses