Irish Dance Instruction

Inishfree Austin is under the direction of former Lord of the Dance and Feet of Flames Lead Dancer, Patrick McCarthy, Championship Dancer, Pierce Beach, and Kathleen McCarthy is our guest teacher and is also a former Lord of the Dance Lead Dancer. Emily Touzin and Leslie Touzin Middleton are guest teachers from our sister school in Dallas, Texas. 

Patrick is a native of Belfast, Ireland and has over 20 years of competitive dance experience. He has five years dancing globally as part of Michael Flatley’s world touring and record breaking troupes. Patrick was a consistent top 3 competitor in all the major Irish Dance competitions. As well as being a qualified Irish dance instructor and adjudicator, Patrick also has an honors degree in Physical Therapy. Incorporating Irish Dance with his knowledge of injury and prevention is another reason Inishfree Dancers keep their bodies in tip-top condition. Patrick's main focus in class is to help develop the young dancers, choreograph material, and work closely with the Texan Champion dancers. 

 Pierce is a Regional Champion and has competed and placed in both solo and team dancing at the World Championships. Pierce was one of the very first Southern Region Oireachtas Champions. From the age of ten, until he retired, Pierce qualified for the World Championships in both solo and team dancing. Pierce works mainly with new dancers and over the last two years has developed a talent for this. Inishfree has some of the most talented young dancers in the region with three of our youngest dancers being crowned Regional Champions this year.