A SCHOOL of Irish dancing in Malahide is celebrating 25 years of jigs and reels at the coastal village that has been proud to be its host since 1984. The McKenna School of Irish Dancing has been turning out champions for a couple of decades now and is in celebration mode this year as it marks a very significant anniversary. The school's fame has stretched across the globe, even as far as China where dancers from the school have become a permanent fixture of Beijing's St Patrick's Day celebrations in recent years. The school is we l l established and very highly regarded and aims to teach Irish dancing in an atmosphere that is pleasant and fun for the students.

It is affiliated to Cumman Rince Naisiunta and an important part of the Malahide community which has been proud to host the school for all of these years. Two distinguished teachers head up the school and have passed on their wealth of knowledge and skills in the craft of traditional Irish dancing down to scores of Ma l a h i d e dancers.

Claire McKenna is from Kinsealy a n d began dancing in Malahide at the age of just nineyears-old with the Crean School of Dancing. She performed and competed at Feiseanna all over Ireland and the UK and always has a burning desire to teach. She set out on that road when she studied to be a dance teacher under the late Ita Cadwell.

She has three Irish Open titles to her name and a Dance Masters Championship and when she is not dancing, these days she works in Beaumont Hospital.

Claire is joined on the teaching staff of the school by Debbie Carroll f r om Baldoyle who has been dancing since the tender age of four.

She was once a student of Claire's at the Malahide school and now works along side her passing on their collective knowledge to the schools students of today.

Debbie lives in Swords now and works for Eircom when she is not pounding the boards at the school of dance. Congratulations goes to all involved in the school in this anniversary year which is only one of many milestones the school will successfully pass over the coming years.