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T he Irish are well-known for their music and their literature. In the past decade or so Irish dance has become very and Westview Schools organized by the District School Board and the North Vancouver Recreation Commission. March is always a busy month for Pickett because of St. Patrick's Day. She has several bookings around the Lower Mainland for performances by her dance troupe, Eire Born. In North Vancouver, Eire Born consists of 10 dancers ranging in age from 8 to 17 years. They entertain at community events as well as at facilities like the Capilano Care Centre in West Vancouver where they will appear on Friday, March 15. On St. Patrick's Day (March 17), Eire Born will perform in the Rotunda area at the Lonsdale Quay from 3 - 3 : 4 5 pm. Pickett dances along with her students and is often joined by fellow dance instructor and longtime friend Michelle Kilby. Later in March, Pickett will be heading back to Switzerland for a new adventure. She has been contracted to choreograph and perform four dances with a percussion ensemble in Lucerne. She is excited by this new project although at first she declined the invitation three times. Finally the owner of the percussion school came to Vancouver to meet with Pickett and one of her local students.This time she said "yes" and she and this same student are looking forward to a new creative challenge. Pickett isn't sure how long she'll continue to teach Irish dancing. When asked about her future plans she said, "I'll do the find one she gave a workshop of her own. Before she left for Canada, Pickett had already confirmed dates to come back and teach more sessions. Pickett loves teaching the Swiss because they are so hardworking. Each time she returns to Europe she marvels at how much her students have accomplished in her absence. She has trained a Swiss woman, Anne-Marie Jeker, to teach the classes and late last year, Jeker and her husband competed here in Vancouver at the Moore School annual Feis/Oireachtas (Competition of Irish Dance). They both went home with medals. Pickett has been teaching on her own for six years, after having been an assistant teacher with Violet Moore from 1991 to 1996. Locally her more than 120 students range in age from 4 to 42. In North Vancouver, she teaches at the Vanleena Dance Academy and Parkgate Community Centre. She also participates in lunch hour and after school programs at Queen Mary M a r c h | A p r i l 9 popular, especially with the success of Dance. But Irish dancing hasn't always been such a big extravaganza. It has its roots in shows like Riverdance and Lord of the the country folk dances of the small villages. The energetic and lively dance form was one way to bring the community together in celebration. During the English occupation of Ireland, the people were forbidden to play their own music and dance their own dances and even to speak their own language. The dances were kept alive in secret and evolved into an art form. Today they are enjoyed around the world. Irish dancing is Nora Pickett's passion, even though there's not a drop of Irish blood in her. "I think it's in my blood more than some Irish people because of how long I've been involved in it," Pickett says. When she was only seven years old, Pickett started studying with Violet Moore, a native of Ireland and long-time Vancouver Irish dance instructor. She has gone on to excel in competitions around the globe, her most recent triumph being at the North American Irish Dance Nationals 2000 in San Francisco. As a performer, she has shared the stage with local bands such as the Paperboys, Shenanigan and Mad Pudding, with the internationally famous Chieftains of Ireland and, most recently, with Nova Scotia's Natalie MacMaster for five performances on her "Set the stage on fire" tour in October of 2001. Pickett is now passing her love of Irish dancing along to a new generation of dancers. As a teacher she strives to create a positive, passionate, energetic and fun-loving environment for her dancers. In 1996 she established the Nora Pickett Irish Dance Academy and Society. She teaches solo hard-shoe/stepdance and soft-shoe courses as well as ceili (group) and show/choreography courses with classes in North Vancouver, Richmond and Switzerland. Oops! Was that a typo? No, it wasn't. She does teach in Switzerland, traveling to the central European country about four times a year to conduct workshops. Her work in Switzerland started in 1999 when she visited her future husband in his native country. He was working all day and she was itching to dance. She phoned around to a few of the dance schools looking for an Irish dance class. When she didn't At 30 Pickett has plenty of years left to dance and she's more passionate about it than ever Irish dancing until it doesn't feel like something I'm passionate about anymore. I'm a big believer in doing something that you really enjoy." At 30, Pickett probably has plenty more years of dancing in her shoes. She says she's more passionate about it now than she ever was before. The Nora Pickett Irish Dance Academy will be hosting a fundraising ceili (music and dance party) on April 20 at the Mount Pleasant Community Centre, situated about halfway between Richmond and North Vancouver. Funds raised at this annual event go to purchase costumes for the dancers in the Eire Born troupes. She's also planning to host a ceili in Switzerland during the late spring or early summer. Pickett always welcomes fundraiser, new students To get in touch or the April with her about classes, stage presentations call 604-290-5323 norapickettirishdanceacademy@hotmail.com. or you can e-mail