Dance-work: Images of Organization in Irish Dance

Abstract

Access to the full text of the published version may require a subscription. submitted for publication in Organization. Rights AbstractThe Irish economic boom, commonly known as the Celtic Tiger, provides an interesting and unique opportunity to explore the relationship between the profound shifts in the organization of working life and in the production and consumption of culture. In this paper, we confine our inquiry into the relationship with one aspect of popular culture, namely dance, focusing on the phenomenon of Riverdance which emerged contemporaneously with the Celtic Tiger. We argue that both are deeply immersed in larger organizing discourses, historical narratives about national identity and civilizing attempts to control the body. We identify three distinct 'moments' in the development of Irish dance, which we label as pre-national, 'Traditional' Ireland; national, 'Modern', Parochial Ireland; and global, 'Post-modern' Ireland. This provides a narrative through which we explore the transformation of working 1 relations in Ireland during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries.

A Changing Focus: The Evolution of Irish Step Dancing Competitions in Australia

“…Step dancing is, indeed, characterized by global homogeneity in its structure and practice. Thus, the claim that the IDC provides an excellent example of efficient control is exemplified in the findings of this article, and the competitions, which have been the focus of the discussion, are an important mode of maintaining that power (Kavanagh, Kuhling, and Keohane 2008). However, the use of localized examples, such as those provided here, not only grounds the research geographically but illuminates the complexities of the local-global dichotomy within the very specific field of step dancing.…”

“…This is not to say that step dancing no longer has a role in embodying notions of Ireland or that current Irish-Australian step dancers do not construct representations of Ireland through dance. Rather, step dancing in Australia illustrates the nexus of three fields of globalization, as the worldwide spread of step dancing has enmeshed itself with both the generalized popularity of Ireland and its traditions (Kavanagh, Kuhling, and Keohane 2008; Rapuano, 2001) and the “global entertainment culture” (O'Connor 2013, 126) in which dance plays an important role. So while previously, dance was used to develop and bolster the collective self-confidence of Irish-Australians, it is now able to capitalize on a situation in which Irish identity is celebrated rather than denigrated, and thus dance can represent that self-confidence at full maturity.…”

“…Over time, multiple additions and revisions have resulted in a complex, multisectioned list of regulations by which all those who are affiliated with the IDC must abide in order to receive official recognition (An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha 2017). The IDC exerts universal control of sufficient rigidity to inspire its description as “the classical organizational form of modern economy and administration: standardized, efficient and quality controlled mass-production” (Kavanagh, Kuhling, and Keohane 2008, 735–736).…”

“…The equivalent organization in the United States, in both structure and connection with the IDC, is the Irish Dance Teachers’ Association of North America (2019). Thus, IDC-registered competitions are an important means through which the IDC may generate and perpetuate a hierarchy of power and knowledge, even as far away as Australia (Kavanagh, Kuhling, and Keohane 2008).…”

“…This is not to say that step dancing no longer has a role in embodying notions of Ireland or that current Irish-Australian step dancers do not construct representations of Ireland through dance. Rather, step dancing in Australia illustrates the nexus of three fields of globalization, as the worldwide spread of step dancing has enmeshed itself with both the generalized popularity of Ireland and its traditions(Kavanagh, Kuhling, and Keohane 2008;Rapuano, 2001) and the "global entertainment culture"…”