YEATES ACADEMY SUMMER CAMPS + WORKSHOPS
The Yeates Academy of Irish Dance offers several summer camps and workshops throughout the year. See below for details on the 2025 schedule!
SUMMER CAMPS
JIGS FOR KIDS™
July 6 - 10, 2026, 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
5-day camp for Boys and Girls, All ages
This week-long, half-day camp is open to students completely new to Irish dance and Yeates Academy. Yeates Academy students who have not yet started in hard shoes can also register for the Jigs for Kids™ camp.
Jigs for Kids™ camp celebrates Irish culture and traditions via storytelling, music, and dance! Campers will participate in arts and crafts, dance games, and an introduction to hard and soft shoe Irish dance. Dancers will also watch videos of Riverdance and Lord of the Dance. All campers get a Yeates Academy t-shirt as part of their registration. Workshop participants: Please wear t-shirt and shorts, and bring *Irish Dance soft shoes or ballet shoes, jazz shoes or tennis shoes. Please bring your own water bottle and snack each day with your camper's name on all items.
*Irish dancing shoes are not required for new beginners and camp dancers.
YEATES BEGINNER STUDIO WORKSHIP + SUMMER CAMP
July 13 - 17, 2026, 9:30 am - 1:30 pm
5-day camp for Boys and Girls, All ages
This Monday through Friday half-day camp is an excellent workshop for current Yeates Academy students in the Beginner 1 & 2 levels. Students will review their soft shoe dances with a strong focus on technique and style. Campers will learn new dance steps, including hard shoe steps and rhythms! There will also be an introduction to ceili (team dancing) in this camp! Students registering for this workshop must have hard shoes and be ready to work hard in their hard shoes, as that will be a large focus each day. All campers get a Yeates t-shirt as part of their registration.
YEATES NOVICE STUDIO WORKSHOP + SUMMER CAMP
July 20 - Jul 24, 2026
5-day camp for Boys and Girls, All ages
This week-long, half day camp is for Yeates dancers that are in the novice/prizewinner level, or advanced beginner dancers looking for a challenge to advance on to novice material. Camp focus will be on new material for your dancer's level, ceili dancing, and traditional sets. All campers get a Yeates t-shirt as part of their registration.
*Dancers in the advanced beginner levels must know all of their beginner dances well, and get approval from Sinead before registration.
**Dancers that are new to the novice and prizewinner levels are encouraged to attend this camp.
Cancellation Policy: All camp registration fees are refundable up to 30 days before the camp start date (minus a $20 admin fee). Cancellations less than 30 days out are non-refundable.
WORKSHOPS
Participating in workshops is a standard component of Irish Dance education and essential for the competitive dancer. Workshops are designed to help your dancer continue to build confidence, learn new and improved steps, techniques, dances, etc. It is a requirement for all of our dancers competing in feiseanna to participate in workshops as part of their training. Workshops are offered at various times throughout the year for the different competitive dance levels. Dancers attending major competitions such as Oireachtas, Nationals and World are required to attend the Michael Smith workshop.
STUDIO WORKSHOPS
Beginner 1 (B1), Advanced Beginner (B2) and New Novice Dancers Summer workshops for B1, B2 and New Novice dancers are typically held over a 5-day period in July or August. The summer workshop is an excellent opportunity for your dancer to progress through the different levels in Irish dance. (See registration information above)
Traditional Set Dance Workshop: This standalone workshop is designed to help dancers learn their set dance for competition. These workshops are held at different times throughout the year, look in MailChimp for upcoming workshops.
MICHAEL SMITH WORKSHOPS
Michael Smith (TCRG & ADCRG) is a world-renowned Irish dance choreographer. Michael has numerous awards and accolades in the realm of Irish dance. Michael is in very high demand worldwide for workshops. We are incredibly fortunate to have Michael come to Portland to work with our dancers!
Competitive Novice/Prizewinner Dancers: Are required to attend at least one of the Michael Smith workshops a year.
Preliminary/Open Champions Dancers: Dancers competing at this level are required to take the Michael Smith workshops. In the event that your dancer cannot take the workshop, due to unforeseen circumstances, you will be charged a percentage of the “workshop fee,” so that the material can be focused on in class.
Once the Michael Smith workshop dates are announced, you must contact the office in advance, if you or your dancer is unable to attend the workshops