Oireachtas Joint and Select Committees

Wednesday, 16 October 2019

Joint Oireachtas Committee on Arts, Heritage, Regional, Rural and Gaeltacht Affairs

Dance as a Performance Art: Discussion

Dr. Catherine Foley:

That is because they were PE teachers. I mean no disrespect to PE teachers. They are marvellous and have been doing a great service by bringing dance to secondary schools. There are university programmes, such as the one in UL, and young people go to university to obtain degrees in dance but I would like these dancers to go back into the education system. I would like the Government to recognise dance in a serious way. I did a PhD in dance 30 years ago. It was the first in the world in Irish dance. I did it because I wondered why nobody was doing it. I knew it could be done. I did not do it because I believed it would result in anything afterwards but because I loved it and believed in it. I believe in it to this day. Dance is an extraordinary field. We have all talked around this table about the power of dance and how it crosses psychological and ideological divides. I refer to all the agendas beyond the physicality of the body, including tackling health issues. The power of dance is quite incredible but the Government needs to recognise that. It can happen within the education system. The Government needs to recognise dance as a serious school subject.

Years ago, perhaps in secondary school, I was told that if I was academic, I should do the sciences and that if I was not, I should do the softer subjects, such as music. I asked why that should be. I believe we are now changing but I would love to see dance in secondary schools. As with the music system, it is not a matter of ballet or contemporary dance but of all dance. Irish dancers, in particular, have rarely been included in this regard. When I was at university, doing a music degree, I was told during the Irish music module that I could play a bodhrán but that I would not be allowed to do an Irish dance. That was when I was 20. I believed there was something wrong when dance, as an intelligence, was not recognised.

Howard Gardner wrote a book called Frames of Mind: The Theory of Multiple Intelligences. Dance is an intelligence. It upsets me to see it is not recognised as such. It is not given the credit it deserves and it is not acknowledged for what it is. I believe strongly in dance and I want it everywhere. I want it to be an inclusive art and I want it in the educational system. I want to see an advancement of the technical training of professional dancers in Ireland because it is not just a matter of one or the other; it is a question of many facets in Ireland. Dance fulfils many functions.

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