BY LISA STAYTON
MOUNTAIN CITIZEN
Inez native Lyndsey Horn, performing with McTeggart Irish Dancers-Kentucky at the 2024 Mid-America Oireachtas near Chicago, finished first.
Horn’s Ceilidh 8-hand team made history as the first all-women’s team from McTeggarts to win the competition. Her team was also the first to win the competition while performing Lannigan’s Ball.
Horn’s Ceilidh 4-hand team finished fifth out of 40 teams. A second McTeggart 4-hand team claimed first in the competition.
For Horn, who has been dancing with McTeggart for two years, the victories reflect dedication, teamwork and passion.
The Mid-America Oireachtas, a regional championship under the Irish Dance Teachers Association of Mid-America (IDTAMA), brings together top talent from 14 states. It is a high-pressure environment where precision, stamina and collaboration are paramount. Horn described the atmosphere at the competition as both chaotic and supportive.
“The wonderful thing about my team is that we are very supportive of each other. We celebrate small and big wins,” she said. “It’s very overstimulating because there is so much going on in every square inch of the convention center. But amidst that chaos, there was strength and love for each other.”
Preparation for the Oireachtas began months earlier with auditions held in August to determine team placements. Training sessions were rigorous, involving weekly practices for both solo and ceili competitions.
“Practices usually run about an hour and a half to two hours each,” Horn noted, emphasizing the need for precision and synchronization.
“When you are practicing for such a precision-based competition, the main challenge is being in tune with your team,” she added. “You have to find where the weak moments are in the dance and work together to perfect little details, even if it’s simply the angle of your kicks.”
The hard work paid off, culminating in an emotional awards ceremony where Horn’s team was named champions.
“It filled my heart with joy. This was my first year competing on an advanced ceili team, and I didn’t want to let the team down,” she shared. “To be a part of making school history was a joy to experience. I’m really grateful to be a part of this female-powered team.”
The win was deeply personal for Horn.
“It heals a part of my inner child,” she said. Growing up, she had always been drawn to Irish culture and dreamed of learning Irish dance, but access to a school wasn’t available. Now, as an adult, she has learned the art and excelled in competition. “If little Lyndsey could see me, she’d be so proud,” she added.
Horn’s journey in Irish dance began in 2022.
“We say all the time that Irish dance is weird and it requires weird movements from our bodies that we wouldn’t usually ask of it,” she said. “So there was definitely a learning curve of ‘how do I move my legs in that way when my upper body is stagnant?’”
Reflecting on her favorite memories, she mentioned both the camaraderie of performances during St. Patrick’s Day season and the thrill of competition.
“Performances are when we are allowed to truly enjoy ‘folk dancing with friends,’” she said. “Competitions are fun, but performances let us try new and funky things.”
Irish dance holds a deeper cultural significance for Horn.
“Growing up, I was always told I had Irish heritage by some family members who liked genealogy. So I was always drawn to Irish culture,” she said. “Any chance I had to do a report on another country in school, I always chose to do it on Ireland. The culture is so intriguing to me, from the myths and legends to the recipes to the music. It is loud and proud and resilient, which is so reminiscent of Appalachia.”
She noted that Irish culture had heavily influenced Appalachian culture due to the people who settled in the region before America existed. “Even if the ancestry records are wrong and I’m not genetically Irish, my heart still belongs to the Irish, just as it belongs to Appalachia.”
Irish dance lets Horn experience a part of the culture that she resonates with and finds beautiful. She credits her father with inspiring her interests. The two of them shared a love for Celtic music. They listened to it year-round and watched Irish step dancing on St. Patrick’s Day.
“I always loved watching the dance form; it was so mesmerizing to me. It is so unique and so uniquely Irish. I always found the rhythms that fit perfectly with the music to be so satisfying. And as a young girl, I was all about the sparkly dresses.”
After a well-deserved rest, Horn and her teammates will gear up for their favorite time of year—St. Patrick’s Day season. Performances celebrating Irish heritage will keep the dancers busy and the spirit of the Oireachtas alive.
For those considering joining an Irish dance team, Horn offered advice rooted in her own experiences: “Be willing to take criticism and act on it to build your skills. You’re going to make mistakes but don’t let them defeat you. Keep learning and perfecting your art.”
Lyndsey Horn, MA, CCC-SLP, grew up in Inez with her parents Jimmy and Mary Lynn Horn and brother Colin. She graduated from Sheldon Clark High School and earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees at Eastern Kentucky University. Horn then earned her Certificate of Clinical Competence in Speech Language Pathology (CCC-SLP) and is in practice at Bluegrass Pediatric Therapies.
About McTeggart Irish Dancers-Kentucky: Founded in Cork, Ireland, in 1939 and established in Kentucky in 1995, McTeggart Irish Dancers is central Kentucky’s premier certified school of Irish dance. The school offers classes in Irish dance, sean nós (old-style) and set dancing, as well as lessons in the Irish frame drum, the bodhrán. Find more information at kyirishdancers.org.