By Delaney Kelly

Of the Gleaner

Many people know that Clare McCullough , ‘14, is an Irish dancer, but not many know just how talented she is. This is most likely because of her modesty, she does not like to boast about her accomplishments.

McCullough started dancing at a very young age with her sister Emily. Clare explained, “I loved it from the start and having my sister as my mentor made it even better.” The sisters began at the Cullaghdah School of Irish Dance, which is now the McNulty School of Irish Dance. When McCullough turned eight, she began competing. At these competitions she began to move her way up the ranks. She is now in the Open Championship level, the highest level to achieve.

Last Thanksgiving she attended the Midwest Regional Championship for Irish Dancing. At a competition like this, dancers are to perform three different dances. They are assigned the dances by age groups. First off the dancer performs dance one soft shoe, which is a more ballet like, graceful dance, and one hard shoe, the loud, tap like dance. After the dancer has finished that dance the judges decide which of the dancer to recall for one final dance. The final dance is how they decide the winner. Clare has participated in this competition for the past four years.

Along with the regional championship, McCullough competes in competitions in the area every couple of weekends. She has a pattern of placing in the top five of her groups. Although many of us are unaware of her talents, they are there and amazing.