The Brits 2000

What was it like to be there?

At the end of October, and for the 11th year in succession, some of the best Irish Dancers in the World gathered together at Brean Sands in Somerset, for this years British Championships. Perhaps aptly for this, the millennium year, there were nearly 2000 dancers, who had travelled from such far away places as Chicago, Ohio, and New York as well as the more local visitors from Ireland and the four corners of Great Britain.

Even for those who have been before, there is still a special magic about the Brits. It starts even before you arrive on site. As you travel through the tiny village of Brean, and head towards the sea, you notice something that is rather bizarre. You begin to pass strangely dressed children and young adults, some with multicoloured curlers in their hair, or masses of curls cascading over their shoulders. Their clothing is almost a uniform, all wearing tracksuit leggings or shorts (in Britain in Autumn!), and T-shirts or short jackets, usually with strange embroidered or printed logos. Not for these people the usual familiar designer labels, but logos far more important, that define exactly who, and what, they are....Irish Dancers! A special breed that live, eat, drink, and sleep Irish Dancing and Irish Dance Music.

In any other place this would seem weird, but here it just seems to be normal! A sure sign that this is going to be something special! The eager dancers approaching in their cars begin to feel that energy and nervous excitement that makes all the hard work seem worthwhile, and the feeling is infectious. For parents that are beginning to tire of the usual drudgery of travelling to feisanna the Brits are an uplifting experience too, a place where they can relax and enjoy themselves for a change. Suddenly the long journey is forgotten as everyone can't wait to spot the entry gates.

Before heading for the car park the dancers have to be dropped at the doorway, too eager to wait any longer. After parking the car it's time to search for your lost child! As you step through the doors of the main hall the atmosphere hits you right between the eyes, almost engulfing you. The Music is blaring out, up on the stage, beyond a sea of people, someone is dancing, and all around you there is the constant rhythmic tapping of dancers practicing in their heavy shoes. When you have recovered your senses you begin to spot the familiar faces of people you've met at feisanna before, parents and dancers, and then begin to see your own friends and school dancers.

By now the dancers are huddled together, chatting excitedly, already imagining their moment to come when they get to dance on the stage. Then they all disappear to explore the site, and see who else they can find, including the dancers from other schools that have become friends over time. The next important step is to find the 'office' to collect the dancers number and book in. This was a bit difficult as they only seemed to appear after the presentations in the evening, which was quite late sometimes. It might be worth the SERC remembering that some people only arrive the evening before their childs competition and want to collect their number and get to bed early.

The Brits are ably organised by the Southern England Regional Council (SERC) of An Coimisiun who really deserve a mention at this point. Not only do they have an ideal venue for the event but the competitions are well organised and everything seems to run smoothly. Obviously behind the scenes there may be some problems, but nobody is affected by them. The committee members work long hours to ensure everything is right, and as a parent I thank them on behalf of everybody for their efforts. All competitions start at 9.00a.m. approximately, and each of the two halls is host to one of the larger age groups in the morning. In the afternoon the main hall hosts a smaller competition, perhaps Ceili teams, so that the evening can be free for the presentations and entertainment. The presentations and results are very well handled as well, but more about that later.

The Venue

Pontins holiday centre is designed for holidaymakers, so all the facilities needed for this type of event are on hand. This helps to make the Brits a enjoyable friendly event. But don't just take my word for it. I asked Breda Malfesi whose daughter Alison dances with the Kerry Kelly-Oster School of Irish Dance in New York USA what she thought of the Brits 2000. She had this to say :

"It was a great experience. It was a lot calmer than our oireachtas which have so many more competitors and they are regionals not nationals. This was so much calmer and easier to sit through. The venue was comfortable - I like the tables and chairs in the ballroom. It's better than ours which is set up more like the club room but there are always so many people moving in and out of the rooms. Also, you don't charge admission. (A welcome change at a feis for all of us) Our oireachtas charge a fee every day! I came and went every day without a fee. That was a nice change."

As you enter the competition hall you are met with a rising wall of sound as parents and dancers make their final preparations for the competition to follow. Hair is adjusted, the last curlers removed, shoe laces checked etc. and people are calling back and forth to each other. Suddenly a voice calls over the loudspeaker for quiet and the noise in the room fades away.

This is the moment that everyone is waiting for. The room is hushed and yet in the air is a special buzz, almost like the air before a lightning storm. Dancers and parents alike are swept along with excitement of it all. The daytime drabness of the hall seems to magically transform as the house lights go down and the music begins. The event begins to become totally unreal as you are carried into a totally artificial night-time world of music, applause, cheers, stage lighting and darkened corners.

The boys heavy round always starts the ball rolling. They strutted out on stage, smartly dressed and ready to dance. The audience were enthralled by these young would-be Michael Flatleys who responded by giving us their all. Each and every performance was greeted with warm applause by the happy smiling crowd. Unfortunately the boys competitions are always finished too soon. (An interesting point to note is that the number of boys rose considerably this year, perhaps a reassuring sign of things to come). Next it was the girls turn to show their stuff. At the side of the stage the first of the competitors stand quietly, nerves on edge as they begin to feel the pressure. For most of them this is the biggest event of the year and it shows in their faces. There's a mixture of fear and anticipation as they shuffle from one foot to the other, going over their steps in their thoughts. With fingers and hands performing every click and rock, they move slowly closer to the stage. Suddenly it's their turn and the adrenalin kicks in. You can watch them visibly grow as they switch to performing mode, a smile lighting up their eyes and faces.

The queue of girls seemed never-ending, as one after another beautifully turned out dancer appeared. Resplendent in their costumes in a multitude of designs and colours, with the lighting flashing off of the sparkly bits and crystals in all directions, they certainly looked the part. And the dancing was even better! Every time you thought you'd seen the possible winner another girl equally as good appeared. In the end it was impossible to remember who was who! Certainly it helps you to appreciate just how difficult the adjudicators job can be.

The whole process is repeated again for the light competitions with the same adjudicators. Given the time they had been sat there credit must be given to them for their stamina. With this in mind the council might like to consider this suggestion by Breda Malfesi . "I wasn't happy with the fact that the same panel of judges sat for all three rounds. In our oireachtas the judges change for each round. I think this is better for the kids because if a judge doesn't like you at least you get someone else judging you the next round."

Everyone was taken on the rollercoaster ride of their life, covering the full set of human emotions. From the elation that comes from watching obvious perfection, to the compassion for the child that slips and falls. When this happens the whole room takes a sharp intake of breath. Who could fail to be moved by the tears that well up in a childs eyes as something goes wrong for them on stage. Then your own child arrives on stage and you swell up with pride, whilst inside anxiously dancing every step and turn with them, willing them to get every movement just right. Eventually you become mesmerised by just how good they all are, watching transfixed, cuccooned within the music. As they leave the stage the dancers relief is obvious, relief that they hadn't gone wrong and relief that it was over! The emotional strain was just too much for some and they rejoined their families totally drained and exhausted.

When all the dancing is done every dancer is presented with a certificate and gets one more chance to stand in front of the audience, for their moment of glory. As the lights go up the spell is broken and you realise that it's still daylight outside. During the break it's time for refreshments, fortunately all of which were reasonably priced. Up in the bar, dancers are still practicing, feet flashing about, clicking and tapping frantically. Up close some of the steps are simply awesome. It's hard to imagine how much work it takes to reach this sort of standard, but it certainly makes queuing for a drink more enjoyable!

The announcement is then made that the recall dancers have been decided, and the room goes quiet. As they begin to call the numbers out the atmosphere is intense, almost as if every single person is holding their breath. The silence is overpowering, broken only by the occasion scream as a dancer hears their number. All over the hall people are ticking off the numbers called and there's a sudden ripple as several hundred program pages are turned at the same time. For a moment every one relaxes and the tension eases. Then it's on with the rest of the numbers.

For those that get recalled there's more strain to come as they dance singly for their set dances, and the rest can at last relax, even though they might be a little disappointed.

The recall is one area where the SERC may perhaps have made a slight error of judgement. In some competitions the percentage of dancers recalled was quite high, whilst in others quite low. For example, most boys competitions resulted in 50% being recalled whilst the girls were more like 35/40%. Obviously this was in part due to time restrictions but it does seem a little unfair. This is especially the case as the larger groups had to dance in threes to save time in the first place. In the U12 girls competition, which was the largest group, only 50 dancers were recalled. This figure represents only 28% of the total, so there were many dancers who were probably worthy of a recall, but missed out.

This point was also made to me by Breda Malfesi (New York) :

"We were at Pontins on Thursday, Friday, Saturday and Sunday. I really think it was unfair to only recall 50 kids. Since they were dancing them 3 at a time the competitions went fairly quickly. When I looked at Alison's competition results there were about 20 kids after 50th place who still had points, so they should have been recalled. You never know, their sets could have been really great and pulled them through. (A very valid point) I just think a lot of girls were disappointed because they came a great distance (me included) and at great expense and to find out that only 50 were going to be recalled was not right. But I guess that's what it's all about. We had a great time anyway."

When the set dance competition is over and adjudicators scores have been checked the hall again fills for the results. This is one area that the Brits really excels at. With the help of the Computex computerised scoring system, and projector, everyone can follow the scores as they are announced. Every recalled dancer has their score called and the totals are announced at the end. The excitement is overwhelming and it is hard to hear as the crowd goes crazy. The placings are then called out one by one to collect their prize medals amid loud dance music and frantic cheering from everyone in the hall. Never have I seen such warm support of all the recall dancers as I did at the Brits. Each and every dancer was made to feel really special for their supreme efforts, which they all thoroughly deserved.

After the presentations the evening entertainment began. This is a chance for the dancers to let their hair down and relax, away from the pressure of competition. And boy did they relax! It must be quite rare to gather so many dancers in one place and then play music for them to dance to. There wasn't a space anywhere on the floor all night as competition rivals became friends they had only just met! The bands were lively and played a good mixture of music to entertain all ages.

On the Sunday morning, before the final competitions, Mass was held in the main hall. This provided a welcome chance for dancers to contemplate quietly before the competitions to come and was a welcome relief for everyone from all the frantic goings on up until then.

There were some events that occurred that deserve special mention, if only to show the sort of attitude that prevailed throughout the Brits 2000.

During the Under 16 girls competition the whole hall stood, including some on chairs and tables, in order to watch the beautiful performance by the one and only Sinead Ellis of the Sean Eireann McMahon school. As she finished, the cheer was enough to lift the roof off of the Pontins hall! It just goes to show that we all still appreciate a good dancer.

A special mention for John McNamee of the Regional Council for entertaining everyone with his own very special brand of dancing. One evening, as the hall was waiting for something to happen, John was sweeping off the stage. Over the sound system a latin dance track was playing and John began to do the Samba with his broom, imperceptibly at first, but as the crowd in the hall began to clap in rhythm he began to strut his stuff! The DJ then stopped the track and replaced it with I'm Too Sexy by Right Said Fred. John, to his credit, then really went for it. Pulling his jacket off of his shoulders, he wiggled his hips and pranced up and down the stage to the delight of the audience who gave him a rousing cheer as the music faded. I ought to point out that John is not a spring chicken anymore, to say the least! I spoke to him afterwards and he said he was only sweeping up. Far too modest John, we salute you for such an enjoyable impromptu performance. For those of us who enjoy the Ceili and figure dancing there were some real treats at the Brits 2000, including a fantastic 16-hand reel. I must mention the Senior Mixed Ceili, where the arguments for and against the wearing of kilts were just blown out of sight. One team was perfectly turned out in kilts and looked sensational. It certainly helped to highlight the precision of the footwork involved, perhaps a lesson to be learnt by solo dancers.

All in all the Brits 2000 were a good experience for the dancers and their parents too. Some children may have left the event slightly sad and disappointed, but most of them would agree that they wouldn't have missed it for the world (but maybe for the World's!). For parents it was a welcome shot in the arm that brought some of the fun and excitement back into supporting their childs chosen lifestyle. As with all things there are some improvements and changes that could be made, and I'm sure that the Regional Council will be thinking about some of them but overall they are getting things about right.

Chris Shreridan whose daughter Bridget dances with the Ann Johnston school of Irish Dance in Syracuse, New York, USA told me "We really had a great time, and hope to attend again next year. Bridget ended up in 62nd place, and was the second highest placing American in her competition so.. we're pretty happy about that." You can't say fairer than that but I'll leave the last word to another visitor from the States, Breda Malfesi, who sums it up nicely. She says : "Alison and the other dancers from our school really enjoyed the event. Nerves aside I think it was a wonderful experience for everyone. It was definitely worth the trip. Being considered 'good enough' by your dance teacher to enter you is reward enough. To pass up the experience would have been foolish"

And that just about says it all!