Claire Gutschenritter is planting the roots of a storied dancing tradition in Kalispell soil. She recently launched An Daire Academy — named for the Irish term for “oak tree” — to instruct local students in traditional Irish dance.

“It’s meaningful if it connects to your heritage,” Gutschenritter said.

Gutschenritter’s own Irish background served as the seed from which An Daire Academy has grown. During her childhood in Chicago, Gutschenritter remembers her grandfather maintaining a strong connection with the family’s Irish roots. On Sundays, her family would seek out jam sessions at Chicago pubs where they could participate in Irish dancing. Gutschenritter was so smitten with the dance style, she joined a formal group when she was around 7 years old. She trained and competed until she went to college, although she continued to occasionally bust out an Irish dance move as a party trick.

After attending graduate school at the University of Montana, she found Irish dance groups in Missoula and then Kalispell. “I realized there was a little scene in Montana for it,” she said.

Around St. Patrick’s Day 2020, the Covid-19 pandemic started eliminating opportunities to dance and do much else. Gutschenritter, a fifth-grade teacher at Hedges Elementary School, took advantage of the remote learning trend. She established a partnership with An Daire Academy in Portland, a group that offered its curriculum digitally in response to the pandemic. An Daire is directly connected with an Irish dance commission in Ireland.

“Without Covid, this probably wouldn’t have happened,” Gutschenritter noted.

In summer 2020, Gutschenritter started giving in-person, socially-distanced classes in her garage. “It has just grown from there,” she said.

Now, the group that started with five students has expanded into four classes with a total of more than 30 students. Gutschenritter moved from her garage to a rented studio at Northwest Ballet School and Company.

“It’s been a really fun journey,” said Gutschenritter.

An Daire Academy offers four different levels: “Acorns” for children ages 2 to 4, Beginner and Beginner 2 for older children, and Intermediate for dancers who have been practicing Irish dance for a few years.

All of the classes are basically full, Gutschenritter said. As the only instructor, Gutschenritter has had to cap class sizes to ensure the quality of her instruction.

Going forward, however, she would like to offer more classes, including an adult class.

An Daire’s classes follow a standardized progression that hews closely to the traditional Irish dance style. Many other Irish dance groups, Gutschenritter said, have modernized and moved away from the strict traditions.

“Their efforts are to preserve the traditional form,” Gutschenritter said of the Portland organization that helps guide her classes. “They’re trying to really celebrate their traditional culture through it [Irish dance].”

An Daire’s Irish dance style is characterized by specific steps, arms at the dancers’ sides and toes turned outward at all times. “That gives us our distinct look,” said Gutschenritter.

These details are part of a tradition that “goes back hundreds of years,” she added.

Gutschenritter and her dancers enjoy practicing the fancy footwork that has been central to Irish dance since the practice first got off the ground. “It’s all about the feet,” Gutschenritter said.

But one of the biggest draws of Irish dance is the music. “Everyone loves the music,” said Gutschenritter. She said even the toddlers in her Acorn class get excited about the unique musical style that accompanies Irish dance.

To Gutschenritter, the benefits of Irish dance transcend the activity itself.

“Learning dance, learning to perform applies to so many aspects of your life,” said Gutschenritter. She believes her classes help her students develop grit and a growth mindset that they can take with them into their daily lives.

Gutschenritter hopes to bring the benefits of Irish dance to a wider audience, starting with a few pop-up performances for St. Patrick’s Day. During the Celtic jam at Kalispell Brewing Company, An Daire dancers are going to stage a spontaneous public performance, harkening back to the roots of the dance in Ireland.

After that, Gutschenritter hopes to orchestrate some ceilis, which are traditional Irish group dances.

“It could be a really fun way for our community to come together for something cultural and active,” said Gutschenritter.

An Daire Academy is located at 1411 1st Ave W, Kalispell, MT 59901. For more information, call 406-871-5690 or go to https://an-daire-irish-dancers-of-the-flathead-valley.business.site.

Reporter Bret Anne Serbin may be reached at 406-758-4459 or bserbin@dailyinterlake.com.