Dancing at the crossroads used to be young peoples opportunity to meet and enjoy themselves on mild summer evenings in the countryside in Ireland until this practice was banned by law, the Public Dance Halls Act in 1935. Now a key metaphor in Irish cultural and political life, dancing at the crossroads also crystallizes the argument of this book: Irish dance, from Riverdance (the commercial show) and competitive dancing to dance theatre, conveys that Ireland is to be found in a crossroads situation with a firm base in a distinctly Irish tradition which is also becoming a prominent part of European modernity.
Acknowledgements
Chapter 1. Into the Rhythm of the DanceChapter 2. Tradition ReinventedChapter 3. Memories in MotionChapter 4. The Link to the LandChapter 5. Storytelling DanceCh
