Niamh pulls on her dancing shoes

Niamh Murray, who is from Lisburn, will be performing along with some fellow Irish dancers from the McGowan Academy in west Belfast. These dancers form part of a total troupe of 174 Highland and Irish dancers from 33 dance schools throughout Northern Ireland and Donegal, all of whom got together on bank holiday Monday for their first show rehearsal. The Tattoo dancers, who range in age from five to 28, will put on a unique display of these two traditional dance forms, bringing together the two distinct styles of dancing and contributing to creating a vivid reflection of rich history and culture in the show.

The dancers make up only a small proportion of the 500-strong cast of performers from Denmark, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Republic of Ireland, Switzerland, Tanzania, Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK who will participate in this summer’s Walled City Tattoo. The Walled City Tattoo will combine the pomp, ceremony and grandeur of traditional Tattoo events with a special Derry~Londonderry twist and bring together an unforgettable cast of musicians, dancers and actors to entertain the 16,000 strong audience in a production that will be unlike anything ever seen in Northern Ireland.

Speaking about her involvement in the show, Niamh commented: “The Walled City Tattoo is a show unlike any I have ever before performed in. It is a huge production and we are going to be working hard over the next few months rehearsing for our performance. What is really unusual and exciting about the dancing in this event, is the two disciplines and two cultures coming together to complement each other - it isn’t something you normally get to see. Although there are similarities in Highland and Irish dancing there are also some major differences including our style, traditional costume, music and the instruments we dance to. It will be a rare treat for audiences to see them performed alongside each other.”