In 1997, Alicia Guinn rounded up a group of international exchange students to visit a local set dancing class in Northern Ireland. It was the beginning of a lifelong exploration of Irish dance, community, and the meaning of tradition.

After that first set dancing class, Alicia spent a year traveling throughout Ireland to workshops, céilís, and festivals. Later, she often traveled in Ireland and the U.S. to study set dancing with teachers like Pat Murphy, Tony Ryan, Mick Mulkerrin, and Séamus Ó Méalóid. With extensive experience set dancing in Galway and Clare, Alicia has a particular love for “battering” and steps for set dancing.

While living in Galway City in 2001, Alicia had the opportunity to first study sean-nós dancing. She attended Pádraic Ó hOibicín’s classes in An Spidéal as well as weekly classes in the Crane Bar, Galway featuring many dancers and teachers from Connemar. In the past decade, the Devane family and Seosamh Ó Neachtain have been particularly influential in her style and approach to dancing and teaching. With steps learned directly from important dancers in the tradition, Alicia’s expertise is rooted in Connemara sean-nós dancing.

Alicia’s old-style step dancing repertoire includes steps learned from Patrick O’Dea, Jackie O’Riley, Annette Collins, and Kevin Doyle. Alicia’s knowledge of céilí dancing and two-hand dances comes from dancing at céilís, weddings, and house parties.

Over the past 20 years, Alicia has taught, performed, and consulted with festivals and events throughout North America, including Chicago, Milwaukee, New York, Boston, and Washington, D.C. She also taught weekly sean-nós dance classes in Seattle for a decade.

Alicia served as the Dance Director for Sean-nós Northwest for a decade, creating the curriculum and innovative teaching approach for the dance program.

With decades of professional experience in Early Childhood Education, Alicia brings her knowledge of play-based and experiential learning to her dance classes. She relies on these tools to create new, innovative approaches for teaching sean-nós dancing. Alicia inspires lifelong learning in dance, and she creates learning communities that empower students to take risks, to develop creativity, and to harness the traditional arts as tools for self-inquiry and personal growth.