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| Trinity Irish Dancers |
Celtic Dancing can be considered an improved version of Irish Dancing -- its namesake & a major influence -- however, it's actually a broad dance form that focuses on a specific type of music, techniques, & performances.
Celtic Dancing -- and the music & costumes used -- MUST ALWAYS be inspirational, graceful, beautiful and/or impressive, as well as decent & classy.
Celtic Dancing's focus on the "good & wholesome" things of dance, and nothing else, is due entirely to its Irish Dancing component.
Celtic Dancing is -- and can only be -- a resplendent art.
It is the RA.
Aside:
Celtic Dancing was conceived in late 2011 by the creator of the best ever improvement technique, & political ideology, called Deltanism. He got the idea of a film story after watching an inspirational Irish Dancing video on Youtube. Due to the limitations of, & the politics within, Irish Dancing he decided to create a better version of the dance form to suit his story.
The techniques of Celtic Dancing are derived mostly from Ballet, Ballroom & Modern Dance, Acrobatics, Gymnastics, Tap & Irish Dancing. All techniques used must be graceful, beautiful, and/or impressive as well as decent & classy -- the Irish Dancing influence.
Celtic Dancing also uses numerous techniques & practices from the Martial Arts, making it the most versatile, practical, & spectacular dance forms.
Celtic Dancing is a Deltan sport.
It will showcase the simplicity and power of Deltanism as an improvement technique.
But Celtic Dancing also belongs to the World, and will be developed to be the best, & definitive, dance style for all to learn, enjoy, and benefit from.
CELTIC DANCING
The Fundamentals
Celtic Dancing will ALWAYS:
- have Irish Dancing -- and its unique type of music -- at its core
- be a inspirational, graceful, beautiful, and/or impressive dance style
- be an aesthetically pleasing, uplifting, and enjoyable dance form
- have strict DECENCY standards-- governing music, techniques and costumes to ensure that the dance will always be refined, tasteful, dignified, & stylish, and will NEVER be crude, unbecoming or inappropriate, weird or disturbing, sexual or erotic
- have strict CLASS standards -- governing music, techniques and costumes to ensure that the dance will always be refined, tasteful, dignified, & stylish, and will NEVER be crude, unbecoming or inappropriate, weird or disturbing, sexual or erotic
Celtic Dancing will also:
- ensure social, emotional & physical healthiness, strength & well-being
- actively promote GOOD PERSON characteristics including strength & courage, assertiveness & confidence, determination & perseverance, order & discipline, ethics & morals, mutual respect & consideration, social & friendliness, hard work & commitment, loyalty & fidelity, intelligence & wisdom, creativity, objectivity & reasonableness, competitiveness & fair play, pride & honor, individual & social responsibility.
- encourage and promote good SOCIAL RELATIONSHIPS
- encourage and promote good MASCULINITY & FEMININITY
- encourage and promote good MALE-FEMALE RELATIONSHIPS
Celtic Dancing will actively seek to mold mentally & physically strong & healthy individuals of good character, while still providing a great physical activity, and the means for creative & emotional expression/relief & personal enjoyment/fulfilment.
Celtic Dancing only supports natural ways to achieve euphoria, exhilaration or feeling alive. Celtic Dancing will always be firmly against recreational drugs -- especially tobacco & alcohol -- as they are unnatural and a clear sign of human weakness/failings & emotional/mental shortcomings.
Note:
Celtic Dancing was created using the best ever improvement technique called Deltanism.
Nearly anything man-made can be improved or deltanized. All you need to do is Focus (on the goal), Think (the right way), and Understand (our Humanity) when seeking ways to improve something.
The creator of Celtic Dancing is a fervent advocate of strong, good & well developed Cultures, and fully understands their importance on molding or influencing individuals: their identity, values, beliefs, attitudes, behaviour & motivations.
Dance and Cultures are imperfect man-made things.
Dance and Cultures can be good/bad, strong/weak, right/wrong, beautiful/ugly, exciting/boring, uplifting/degrading, beneficial/detrimental etc. They both can be improved, made better or perfected -- deltanized.
Celtic Dancing will continuously seek to be better, the best, or the ultimate.
Celtic Dancing will inevitably have a Culture of Excellence, and will always have a beneficial influence on all of its practitioners, their communities & nations.
Celtic Dancing is, and will always be, Deltan.
The Techniques
Dance is essentially physical movement that is usually done to music. The movement will normally involve a sequence of techniques, and various transitions.
Celtic Dancing derives most of its techniques & transitions from Ballet, Ballroom & Modern Dance, Acrobatics, Gymnastics & Irish Dancing.
Celtic Dancing has all of its movements & transitions done for a particular purpose or reason, and to a particular type of music -- that is, Celtic Dancing must always be inspirational, graceful, beautiful and/or impressive, as well as decent and classy.
This Celtic influence means a wide variety of techniques can be used from other dance forms & sports so long as they fulfill the required purpose or reason. This influence gives Celtic Dancing its own identity and distinguishes it from the major dance forms, from where it gets most of its techniques.
Any gesture, movement or technique -- as well as costumes & music -- that is blatantly anti-social, anarchistic or criminal, sexually provocative, sexist, or racist will never be permitted in Celtic Dancing.
Note: Celtic Dancing will likely seek to copy, perfect, and rename as its own if need be, the techniques it uses from other dance forms -- Ballet in particular.
A distinctive part of Celtic Dancing's identity are the COMBAT TECHNIQUES.
Heavily modified, stylized or beautified Tai Chi, Kung Fu, Acrobatic, Hip-hop, & Break Dancing forms will become a significant & standard part of Celtic Dancing.
The Combat techniques were added to attract more males to the sport, and to allow for highly spectacular & impressive -- and usually very masculine -- performances.
The Combat techniques were also added to Celtic Dancing to make dance an extremely useful, versatile & practical physical activity & sport.
Female dancers can also use the Combat Techniques in their performances but only if their overall femininity is maintained.
The Combat techniques will make Celtic Dancing a Martial Art.
There will be numerous set Combat technique routines at each grade level. These will be very much like the katas used in Karate, or the forms of Tai Chi & Kung Fu, but will be designed for, and performed to, particular types of music -- emphasizing beauty, grace, or the spectacular.
Celtic Dancing will not be into hyper-flexibility or contortion techniques as they are considered weird/awkward, unnatural, unattractive, and unbecoming. Consequently, ground work will only be permitted if it is appropriate for, and attractive or flattering to, the dancer.
Note: The creator of Celtic Dancing is strongly against dancing En Point & high heel shoes. He considers these to be a foolish fashion custom or tradition, unnatural, impractical, & physically harmful -- however pretty, appealing or sexy they make you look or feel.
The Tri-Ruling
Irish Dancing is a core part of Celtic Dancing, and provides the crucial focus for the new dance form.
Celtic Dancing is able to bring in additional techniques from other dance forms & sports to produce something better than the original. But what exactly are the additional techniques that differentiates Celtic Dancing from Irish Dancing?
It was decided 2012/03/31 that ANY technique can be used in Celtic Dancing, so long as it obeys the following THREE RULES:
- The Dance clearly shows the influence of Irish Dancing
- The Dance has all techniques working well with each other
- The Dance has all techniques working well with the music
The TRI-RULING is the key to establishing Celtic Dancing's identity.
It is the Irish Dancing component that compels all Celtic Dancing performances be inspirational, graceful, beautiful, and/or IMPRESSIVE, as well as decent & classy -- whatever techniques are used. This is the Irish Dancing influence.
Relationship to/with Irish Dancing
Irish Dancing is the most important of all influences on Celtic Dancing, and is effectively its emotional "Heart and Soul."
But Celtic Dancing is not, nor ever will be, Irish.
Celtic Dancing is a Deltan sport. It was specifically created to be "The Best" of its type by taking the good things from around the world to make something better.
Irish Dancing is the most important of the good things that was taken to create Celtic Dancing. Ballet is the next most important component.
Celtic Dancing has adopted the three things that makes Irish Dancing popular:
- The lively, uplifting, feel-good music
- The graceful, beautiful, intricate, and/or impressive techniques
- The pleasing/attractive appearances or costumes.
Celtic Dancing separates itself from Irish Dancing by:
- not being Irish-centered
- bringing in new -- TRI-RULING compliant -- techniques
- ensuring the dance and costumes are always appropriate, classy & decent
- actively promote good masculinity/femininity, social interaction, and personal characteristics.
if the Irish Dancing powers forbid any association with Celtic Dancing, the new sport will go it alone, develop a clone of Irish Dancing, and install this as its Core.
Celtic Dancing was created to meet a need, prove a point, and to be the best in its field. It is here to stay. But Celtic Dancing will always need Irish Dancing -- in some form or another -- to be complete.
The Irish Dancing community should not fear the new upstart. It is a friend not a foe. Both dance styles can co-exist harmoniously, while maintaining their own identities.
Irish Dancing will always be what it is.
And Celtic Dancing will always be a general dance form with a significant Irish Dancing influence.
Celtic Dancing & Celtic Football
Celtic Dancing and Celtic Football are improved -- or deltanized -- versions of Irish Dancing and Gaelic Football, respectively. Both of the Irish codes were imperfect man-made things that had huge potential to be made better. Celtic Dancing & Celtic Football were specifically designed to be the best of their type.
Celtic Football is the pride and joy if its creator as it was the first thing he ever designed to be the best in the world, and a true rival to Soccer. It is a sport that will become extremely wealthy, someday.
Due to their shared Irish roots, and being Deltan sports, Celtic Dancing will eventually receive considerable funding from Celtic Football. The two will always be tied together, and will support one another, as great Deltan creations that came from great Irish sports.
Note:
Celtic Dancing and Celtic Football will join with Celtic Crosse -- as well as Formula Rally, Deltan Football, Deltan Baseball -- as premier Deltan Sports to be promoted worldwide.
CELTIC CROSSE will be a new sport that will essentially be an improved version of Hurling with some parts of Field Hockey & Lacrosse included. It is still in the idea stage, and hasn't, as yet, gone through the deltanization process to finalize it as Celtic Dancing and Celtic Football have.
(2013/07/19) It has been decided that the Combat techniques of Celtic Dancing will include Soccer "freestyling," to music, but will also allow ball tricks with the hands/arms. This will further cement the ties between Celtic Dancing & Celtic Football.
CELTIC DANCING FEDERATION
The Federation (CDF) will be the controlling body & will be led by the Commissioner(its creator).
The CDF must ensure Celtic Dancing:
- is an affordable, accessible, appealing, versatile, practical, popular, & marketable performing art & sport
- is an exceptional world sport & dance style
- produce well-rounded and capable athletes/performers
- is always a dignified, wholesome, graceful, beautiful and/or impressive dance style
- keeps its Irish Dancing standards on par with -- or better than -- An Coimisiún le Rince Gaelacha.
Due to the major influence of American Dance competitions -- & especially the TV show Dance Moms -- the CDF Headquarters will be based in the United States and not Ireland as originally planned. Likely favored location will be Rochester(NY).
Note Well:
(2013/12/17)
Studio RA (or simply The RA) will be the first dedicated Celtic Dancing school. It will seek to become a premier dance(sports) academy and will be heavily involved in, and will seek to dominate, major North American dance competitions. It will be used for the development & promotion of Celtic style of dancing, and will serve as the interim HQ of Celtic Dancing.
RA is the acronym for Resplendent (or remarkable) Arts (or all-rounder).
The RA is the simplest means to describe something that is beautiful, graceful, impressive, decent & classy, as well as being versatile & practical.
COMMISSIONED WORKS & COMMERCIAL ENDEAVOURS
Once the the CDF is formed, it will set about commissioning original shows, & productions, to serve as quintessential Celtic Dance works -- as Swan Lake & Lord of the Dance have done for Ballet & Irish Dancing.
The CDF will develop an extensive collection of music pieces in a variety of genres(Irish dancing, pop, classic, instrumental, rock etc). Celtic Dancing will have its own music "type" that would be instantly recognizable.
The various works, merchandizing, & other commercial enterprises will be an important source of income for the CDF & Celtic Dancing.
Celtic Dancing came from the screenplay REELS, which itself came from an idea for an Irish Dancing version of the Australian dance film, "Strictly Ballroom.".
It is only fitting, that REELS be the first work to showcase Celtic Dancing to the world. It is an extremely important promotional and marketing tool so will be improved, or deltanized, until it's the best of its kind, is assured of critical acclaim, will have popular appeal, and will be a commercial success. It intends to be one of the best, if not the best, dance story/movie ever made.
(2014/10/22) The screenplay REELS may be changed to the new title, RA.
This is the video that inspired a future film, and a new dance style.
OPEN SOURCE DEVELOPMENT
Just like Open Source Software(eg Linux, Firefox, Android), Celtic Dancing will be developed as an Open-Source project, and will have a General Public Licence(GPL) to cover all "Celtic Dancing" techniques, routines & choreography.
The GPL will recognize copyright ownership of original choreography to original music.
CELTIC DANCING MUSIC
Celtic Dancing will not have its own unique music style as Irish Dancing does. However, due to the Tri-Ruling and the requirement for performances to be classy, decent, graceful, beautiful and/or impressive, music from a wide variety of genres will be immediately identifiable as Celtic Dancing music -- music that is perfectly suited for Celtic Dancing.
MUSIC LICENCE COMPLIANCE
All CDF Schools, competitions, & performances will comply to licensing and copyrights requirements of all music used.
OPEN DANCE SCHOOL
The CDF will operate an online -- and therefore, International -- Dance School.
The ODS will
- be highly accessible
- provide an inexpensive, comprehensive, stable, quality tuition in the dance
- Establish ALL standards for Celtic Dancing Schools, or affiliated Irish Dancing Schools, to follow.
- develop new techniques and practises
- refine existing techniques and practises
- establish training/educational "best practises"
TCRG & ADCRG Qualifications
With the help of the Studio RA & the Open Dance School, the CDF will eventually seek to develop its own Irish Dancing qualifiations in teaching and adjudication.
Universal Standards, Practises & Dance Notation
The CDF will:
- universally name and standardize all techniques
- define and continually refine "best practises" with teaching Celtic Dancing
- develop the definitive dance notation system.
DANCE SCHOOL AFFILIATES
The CDF will welcome any Irish Dancing School or Dance Company/Studio as an affiliate.
Federation Teachers & Schools will deal with quality control, grading, choreography, &.technique development.
Grading can only be done through Federation schools.
COMBAT TECHNIQUES
Celtic Dancing will have the Combat Techniques -- highly modified, stylized or beautified forms from Tai Chi, Kung Fu, Acrobatics, and Break Dancing.
Under strict guidance of the CDF, Celtic Dancing will also be developed into a Martial Art. This move is to make the sport more attractive to males, and to help make Celtic Dancing both a highly versatile, and spectacular, sport.
The CDF will do considerable R&D to develop practical "Grading" routines that use the heavily disguised Combat techniques. Once these routines are mastered, a Celtic Dancer will be proficient in Self Defense.
Weapons training will likely be adopted through the Combat Techniques and, for the time being, will only involve long & short wooden staffs in advanced(black belt grade) competitions.
Press ups on the knuckles & finger tips, bone-toughening, wrist/grip strengthening, mastering basic kicks/punches/blocks/strikes, & bag work will be routine in any Celtic Dancing workout/warm-ups.
GRADING
Celtic Dancing will have a BELT grading system:
White, Yellow; Orange, Green, Blue; Purple, Brown; Black, Red (Solo World Champion or Grand Master).
Each grade will have 10 routines to master, in order to rank up. These routines or forms will be exactly like Katas used in Karate or Tai Chi forms. They will utilize all the techniques specific to that grade.
Due to the MASTERY requirement, the quality of dancing will be CONSISTENTLY THE SAME between any dancer of a particularly Belt grade.
Grades White & Yellow will teach a highly simplified form of Irish Dancing. These junior grades will primarily be trained in General Dance(incl. Ballet & Ballroom), as well as acrobatics, gymnastics & the certain Martial Arts.
New students of Celtic Dancing will quickly acquire a broad range of dance skills to readily use for their own personal enjoyment & health.
Formal Irish Dancing will start at grade Orange.
Grade levels will be so distinct that Observer could easily discern a dancer's likely grade.
Only graded dancers can compete in Federation competitions.
COSTUMES & DRESS CODE(Formal)
Decency and Class are mandatory requirements for all dance wear -- formal or informal(training).
There will be two types of costumes for competitive dancing:
- Fixed for the Compulsory and Short Dance
- Free-style for the Long Dance
The Fixed-type of costumes are School costumes, that must follow a CDF approved 'traditional 1980s' Irish Dancing Costume template.
The Fixed type of Costume must NEVER be gaudy in their use of colours -- particularly clashing fluorescent pallets -- and in their detailing. Designs must always show CLASS and refinement.
The Free-style type are the varieties used in particular free-dance performances.
In order to keep cost down, for Regional, or smaller, competitions, you can only use costumes from an extensive CDF-approved Free-style collection.
For National and World competitions, you can use any type of Free-style costume.
All types of Costumes must be "classy" and comply with strict decency standards, as well as be appropriate for the music & dance.
Like individual schools, the FEDERATION will have its own Fixed-type costume.
The Federation Costume(uniform) will come in two colour schemes -- in white(green trim), and black(red trim).
Note: It is being considered to have a standard FEDERATION costume/uniform for various regions of the globe(eg. Americas, Asia, Europe, Pacific, Africa), or national -- and will welcome dancers from Dance Academies/Companies & Irish Dancing Schools costumes. Again, they must all comply with the "traditional" template.
Fixed Dress hemlines must be at just-above knee-level or lower. Mid-thigh or higher hemlines will not be tolerated.
Hair curling & wigs are not permitted but clip-in hair extensions are.
Makeup(including fake tans) must only subtly enhance.
Socks must rest naturally under the calves OR be held up by elastic bands above the calves -- never mid-calf. Sock glue will not be permitted.
FEDERATION COMPETITIONS
Celtic Dancing will be heavily involved in competitive dancing -- especially in North America.
THE FEDERATION will establish itself, in the USA, as the premier competition production company, and will welcome all qualified entrants from any Dance Studio/Academies and Irish Dancing Schools.
All CDF competitions are based purely on your Grade -- not age.
A competition will usually offer titles in all -- or a select number of -- Grades
Core Titles at a CDF Competition
There will be individual titles for both hard & soft shoes, for both male and female dancers.
Male (Soft)
Male (Hard)
Female (Soft)
Female (Hard)
Pairs (Open) -- male & female only
Duos(Open)
Trios(Open)
Groups (Open) -- small(4 - 7), large(8 - 16)
Grand Champion
The Grand Champion is the best dancer at a competition, and is the solo performer(male or female) with the highest combined hard- and soft-shoe score.
The Grand Champion of the Celtic Dancing World Championship is considered the best dancer in the World, for that year of competition.
(2013/10/01)
It is being considered to include titles based on common dance styles -- Modern, Jazz, Broadway, Ballroom, Lyrical, Hip Hop, Irish Dancing
It is also being considered running these as side competitions and as open auditions(set choreography), and usually for monetary rewards.
There will also likely be a competition on improv to a set theme/story
Competition Routine Submissions
The entire detailed choreography -- using CDF Dance Notations -- of an original dance routine, must be submitted to the judges prior to its performance. If the routine was used in a previously judged competition then the Judges' scores and notes on that routine must also be submitted.
Competition Routine Perfecting
Federation competitions allow for the ongoing perfecting of original routines. They can be reused, without being marked down for not being new, so long as you are clearly seeking to improve/perfect the routine. They cannot be reused if they have achieved a perfect score already.
Winning routines can be reused but you will receive a mandatory 20 point deduction if it scores less than it did when it won.
Competition Types:
- Regional or Festival -- All or Select Grades
- International or Open -- Select Grades
- National or World -- Advanced Select Grades(Black & Red belts)
Competition Format
Total Points(100%)
- Compulsory -- Fixed Irish Dance music & routines. Irish Dancing techniques only; Mastery or Fail. (25%)
- Short Dance -- free choice of Irish dancing music only, TRI-RULING techniques. Set Irish Dancing techniques requirement within the dance. Scored 50/50(Presentation/Technique). (25%); 1-2 minutes long.
- Long Dance -- free choice of music & dance. Emphasis on successful performance. Scored:70/30. (50%).2-6 minutes long.
The Compulsory focuses purely on Irish Dancing: techniques, music, costumes. A dancer must demonstrate mastery of a CDF-set Routine, otherwise will be failed. The Routine will be grade specific. Failing a Compulsory at a National or World Competition will result in a demotion in Belt grade. Passing this stage of the competition is equivalent to the "Recall" in Irish Dancing.
The Short Dance stage, like the Compulsory, only permits Irish Dancing music and costumes. As Irish Dancing techniques have been shown to be mastered in the Compulsory, the focus will be evenly split between the TRI-RULING techniques used, and overall presentation. However, there will be a requirement to include in the dance, certain Irish Dancing techniques.
The Long Dance stage focuses mainly on the successful presentation of the dance. Any music, costume, and TRI-RULING compliant technique can be used.
Competition Title Prizes & Monetary Awards.
The CDF will seek to offer generous prizes & monetary rewards for titles at National and World competitions.
Competition Video recording
The CDF considers all dance routines to be open property for all to use.
The CDF will professionally photograph & video(HD & 3D) all major competitions & performances for idea sharing, R&D, and for merchandizing, promotions & marketing of the sport.
Judging
Judging, especially at National or International events will be very transparent, and have strict checks and balances to thwart any favouritism, bias, prejudice, corruption, or malicious acts. National and international competitions will utilize a real-time computerized system with the audience being able to see for themselves where points are gained or lost as they happen.
Celtic Dancing World Championship
Celtic Dancing will have an annual World Championship. This may change to every two years.
It will be a goal of the Federation to make Celtic Dancing World Championship the most important and prestigious competitions for the entire dance community. Celtic Dancing utilizes techniques from all the major dance forms, for the perfect performance.
The Celtic Dancing World Grand Champion will literally be the best dancer in the World.
The inaugural Celtic Dancing World Championship is ideally planned for
the first week of July 2024, and ideally held in Dublin, otherwise Rochester(NY) .
Worlds Qualification
Only National Celtic Dancing Champions can compete at the Celtic Dancing World Championship. All World participants must be a Black Belt grade, or better.
Each nation can only enter National Champion(s) title holders (or the runner-up) in the Celtic Dancing World Championship.
A National Grand Champion automatically qualifies for the "Worlds," even if he/she doesn't also hold the a soft- or hard-shoe national title. He/she can compete for both titles.
If the National Grand Champion holds a hard/soft shoe national title, then the runner-up for that title qualifies for the "Worlds," and can compete for both the hard & soft shoe titles, as well as for the World Grand Champion.
The maximum number of solo dancers that any nation can enter in the Celtic Dancing World Championship is FIVE:
- Grand Champion (Male or Female)
- Male Soft(or runner-up)
- Male Hard (or runner-up)
- Female Soft (or runner-up)
- Female Hard (or runner-up)
The Celtic Dancing World Championship will also have titles for Pairs(mixed), Duos, Trios, Groups(small), Groups(large).
Inaugural Worlds Qualification
Unless Celtic Dancing rapidly becomes popular and is able to hold proper national competitions in participating nations, the Grading and National title requirements will be temporarily amended for the 1st Annual Celtic Dancing World Championship. A means will be devised to allow existing Dance Schools/Studios/Companies, & their dancers, to readily participate in the Championship, but still maintain exceptually high standards expected of participants at a World event.
Imperiums
An Imperium is a perfect score achieved at the Celtic Dancing World Championship.
It is only awarded at the Short or Long Dance stage of competition.
The dancer(s), choreographer(s), routine, and music will enshrined in the Celtic Dancing "Hall of Fame."
The music of an Imperium routine cannot be used again, at any Federation competition. Irish Dancing music, however, is exempt from this -- this is a Hallmarked Imperium.
All Imperiums must get final approval and ratification from the Commissioner.
Future development of Celtic Dancing
Celtic Dancing is both a dance form and a martial art.
Celtic Dancing will, eventually, include greater instruction in singing, music playing, and acting so that it will become a complete performing art form.
