Multimedia Journalist & Freelance Writer
How to: Become world champion
This year the streets of Glasgow will be sprinkled with glitter and fake tan, as they welcome the highly-anticipated arrival of dancers throughout 24th March – 1st April. For a competitive Irish dancer, “The Worlds” is literally as big as it gets. With an estimated 14,500 dancers and supporters set to storm the annual event from all across the world, the competition is fierce and the audience is tough. One wrong foot forward could shatter years of dedication, not to mention the thousands of pounds that have brought them to this point.
A vast stage, stretching out into the distance and a lonesome spotlight is all that remains between dancer and world champion. Unless, you get psyched out by the odd ringlet or diamanté, that is.
Nula Sullivan has paid witness to the evolution of Irish dancing whilst running her own dance school, alongside her twin sister. The McManigan Academy of Irish Dance has been passing Irish culture down to the youth of Kent for the past 17 years but prior to becoming a teacher, Nula achieved a successful career as a professional dancer. This enabled her to fulfil a lifetime of wishes in a small space of time.
Nula explains how the passion for dance initially began as a way of learning about her family’s culture, “We were born in England and our family came from Ireland so it was learning about heritage and one of the traditions that they had in Ireland.” However, what started out as a small social occurrence once a week, quickly turned into a devoted hobby, which would see them driving up and down the country every weekend and practising on the floorboards every night.
Just like any hobby, it’s advised to learn from a young age, which Nula also supports and remarks her starting out at the age of eight as, “quite late really”. But it seems as though some good ol’ luck of the Irish seeped through, as it just so happened the twins were good and learnt fast. An unbeatable combination, which meant that it wasn’t long before Nula was dreaming of bigger sights. With a reminiscent grin, she recalls being asked the question every small child ponders at one time or another, “By the time I was 10, I remember drawing on a piece of paper in class, ‘what you want to be when you’re older’ and I drew a dancing teacher then,” she continues without a shadow of uncertainty, “I knew straight away, that’s what I wanted to do.”
It’s important to note that at this time, the possibilities for Irish dancing only extended so far as teaching. Nula explains how a job as a professional Irish dancer hadn’t quite opened up in the market just yet, “We used to do little displays of dance, if there was an Irish family having a wedding anniversary or a baptism party… but it would never be like the shows or professional dancing, as such.” That was the case until one night back in 1994, when Irish dancing was showcased to the whole world. A cult-like fever was spawned and everyone, everywhere was talking about the delights of Riverdance.
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For Nula who was 15 at this point and had even seen Michael Flatley around the competition circuit previously, she couldn’t quite get her head around the phenomenon that was suddenly occurring. Though she does agree that this was Irish dancing like never before, “They’d never seen it and even people who knew Irish dancing had never seen it like that.” The music was different, the costumes were different and all of this brought an element of glamour, which glimmered in the eyes of a young Nula.
The dream had evolved and having competed in the Worlds as a solo dancer, Nula experienced first-hand the brutal nature of competition. Losing the chance of a recall to compete for the honour of a title at the Worlds, leads her to reflect on the grading system. The system, which extends from a beginner through to an open championship dancer, is a lengthy process before you even get a shot at the eventual stage of the Worlds. She says, “They’ve always competed to
move up, that’s the way it’s always been. I think that’s why you get quite a high standard all of the time though because they are competing right from the word go.” Initially at beginner level, you are required to win either 1st, 2nd or 3rd place in order to move up, which means potentially returning to competitions multiple times before progressing.
This led to Nula investing her time in the areas of dance where she believed her biggest strengths were. She makes a clear distinction between the styles of competitive dancing and show dancing, which was popularised after the emergence of Riverdance. Comparing herself to her sister, she laughs, “Most of the time, she would beat me [at competitions] but then when we went onto show stuff, that’s where I excelled so it was very different.” Flatley brought Irish dancing to a higher platform and through doing this, he broke the mould. It was no longer solely about the tight arms or traditional music, as Nula adds, “Riverdance came and it was a completely different timing of music, that had never really been done.”
It’s apparent that Nula has a real sense of appreciation towards Riverdance for completely revolutionising her career path. Play forward to just one year on from the Eurovision Song Contest and Nula was not only getting work as a professional dancer but also experiencing amazing opportunities. She touches upon the highlights, which included featuring on the BBC’s Record Breaker’s show alongside the cast of Riverdance for breaking two Guinness World Records; one for the longest line in sync and the other for the most amount of beats per minute. Though with a touch of disappointment, she adds, “That was broken again by Riverdance, dancing along the River Liffey in 2013.”
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She speaks fondly of these early years though, “Overnight there was the option to become a professional Irish dancer before teaching and get to enjoy and see the world – a fantastic opportunity.” Shortly after, Nula starred in the film The Magical Legend of the Leprechauns, bagging herself the lead role in the dance troupe and life quickly became a blur of living out of a suitcase, whilst touring in a Riverdance troupe. After four years of this nonchalant lifestyle, it seemed appropriate to return home and fire up her original dream of passing on her experiences to other inspired dancers.
Nula now had an array of professional dance experience, as well as the raw talent which brought her to the Worlds and she was excited to help others achieve their dreams. When asked how it feels to pass on her tricks of the trade, she lights up, “The reward is when they come in and they literally can’t do anything and then within an hour or two hour sessions, they’re actually doing a dance with the music,” she adds, “they’re dancing and they’re enjoying dance as well, that’s a big thing.” It’s refreshing to hear an emphasis on the importance of enjoying dance, with so many competitive sports loaded with pressure and gruelling regimes. Though it quickly becomes evident that no champion is born without an element of demand and difficulty involved. To get to the stage of the Worlds, you’ve got to want it more than anything. You’ve got to be prepared for a drilling and know that you might not always enjoy it.
The steps may look complicated enough but learning them is just the beginning. Suddenly placed in a privileged position, Nula divulges the secrets of an adjudicator’s checklist, branding them: ‘The 5 Elements’. Essentially, this translates to the Holy Grail of Irish dancing. While knowing your steps may seem obvious, Nula explains how it’s a vital element which will enable you to place a stronger focus on the rest, “It’s not about knowing the steps, it’s about knowing them inside out so you don’t even have to think about them.” She then reels off the remaining four which include; the highly-regarded timing, carriage, feet placing and best not to forget, presentation. But for a championship level dancer, this is all expected to come naturally.
While Nula believes it’s possible to teach anyone how to dance, she signifies the difference between dancing and becoming a champion, “You can teach anyone basic timing and technique but to have that flare, that’s like a natural God-given gift.” It’s clear that in the end, the key to the Worlds comes down to raw talent but equally dedication. This way of life won’t be for everyone and that’s what separates the champions from the flock of hobbyists.
Image: antoniopacelli.com