The McGinley School
of Irish Dance is the largest Irish Dance School in Central Pennsylvania,
serving over 130 students from Cumberland, Adams, Dauphin, Lancaster,
Lebanon, Perry, and York counties. We serve students as young
as 2 ˝ years through adulthood. Under
the direction of Lena McGinley-Crosier, ODCRN, the school promotes an
environment in which children are encouraged, motivated and challenged to
excel in Irish Dancing and in life. We
hope that our students will form an appreciation of Irish dancing, culture
and heritage that they can in turn share with others in the community.
Our Roots…
The McGinley School of Irish Dance, formerly known as Lena McGinley’s Ceili Dancers,
began as a performance Irish dance troupe in January 2000. The group was created
with six original members and focused solely on teaching and performance. As the
dancers progressed and the 
school
grew, Lena searched for other avenues to challenge
her students. In August 2004, the school became a Cumann Rince Naisiunta (CRN,
Dublin, Ireland), sanctioned school and began to implement CRN’s curriculum.
Click on the Magazine to view the McGinley School of Irish Dance feature school profile
in Irish Dance Magazine!
Feiseanna…
As
a member school of CRN, dancers from the McGinley School have participated
in local, national and world feiseanna (Irish Dancing competitions).
Dancers compete in both solo and team competitions.
The school currently holds 10 Regional Championship Team Titles and
15 Regional Championship Award Winners.
In
April 2006, 22 dancers from the McGinley School of Irish Dance traveled to
Dublin, Ireland to compete in The Irish Open Championships. The
group had a very successful first trip. Jackie Cole won the Mean
Grad Over 21 Award, Garrett Faust placed 5th in the Mean
Grad Under 9 Award, Heather Jorgensen placed 7th in the
Ullmhuchan Over 19 Award, and Sydney Dombrowski placed 10th in
the Ullmhuchan Under 11 Award. The Under 12, 4-Hand Team placed 6th
and the Dance Drama placed 2nd. This was a very impressive, and
great starting point, at the world level.
In April 2008, the McGinley School made it's third trip to the Irish Open Championships and what a year it was! Nine of the eleven teams that competed in the Irish Open Championships, placed in the top four in their Championships. The Craobh Comortos Ceili Paiste 6-Hand (Under 12 Ceili Championship 6-Hand Team) won the Championship, making them the first World Team Championship Title for the McGinley School of Irish Dance and the first American team to do so in CRN. Jamie Pool went on to win the Bun Grad Under 14 Award, making him the second Award winner for the school and Garret Faust moved up three places in his Championship, ranking him 3rd in the Under 11 Irish Open Championship. For complete results, log onto our Feiseanna page.
Performances…
The
performance aspect of the school has not dwindled in the past years
either. The group performs
approximately 70 shows per year and in 2007, Lena and Annie co-produced
the schools first two-hour-long theatre show.
The show was a huge success as dancers performed under the lights
to a sold out audience.
Dancers
from the school have performed with world class Irish entertainers such
as; Cherish the Ladies, Eileen Ivers, Frank Patterson, Gaelic Storm, The Prodigal, Trinity
Irish Dance Troupe, and Searson. On
a local level, the school is known for their crowd pleasing and
entertaining performances throughout Central Pennsylvania.
Throughout the month of March, dancers from the school can be found
performing at all the local Irish Pubs and restaurants.
During the summer months you can find them at the local Irish
Festivals and in September they perform at the PA Renaissance Faire for
their Annual Irish Weekend.
Appearances in
the 2003 and 2004 Harrisburg Saint Patrick’s Day Parades earned the
group awards for “Best Performance” both years consecutively and
in 2005, the group was awarded “Best Entertainment.”
In 2006, the group took it up a notch and was awarded the
"Dauphin County Commissioner's Award, Best Overall" in the
parade. In their debut
performance in the 2005 York Saint Patrick's Day Parade, the group won 1st
place, Best Group/Organization and reclaimed the award in 2006. In
the 100th Anniversary of the Enola Railroad Parade the group
was also awarded 1st Place Large Group.
Please feel free to
check out our performances page for
upcoming shows.
Location…
We are proud to announce that in November, 2007, the McGinley School of Irish Dance purchased a 2800 square foot building in Lemoyne, PA and converted it into a new dance studio for the group. With much help from dedicated parents and students that helped with the moving, cleaning, and painting, along with the many hours put in by our contractor, the new building opened in January 2008. The new studio boasts a 1300 square foot dance floor that was engineered and designed by one of our dedicated fathers, Rick Shannon, and constructed by Rick, Don Faust, and Jay Crosier, with the help of Bob Schaible and Scott Fonner. Some great men that again dedicated their time and talents to our school.
McGinley School of Irish Dance
701 Pear Street
Lemoyne, PA 17043
(717) 439-2991
Info: lena@mcginleyirishdancers.com
If you would like
more information about our school, whether you would like to book a
performance, or join the school as a dancer, please
email Lena directly.
Copyright © 1999 [McGinley School of Irish Dance]. All rights reserved.
Revised: June 11, 2008