Arts in Action
Dance
“In Ireland we put a lot of emphasis on words and the written word but often we can’t express with words alone what it is that we feel”
Key Skill focus
Communicating
Managing Myself
Staying Well
Being Creative
Key Ideas explored
Successes and setbacks - the creative journey
Movement as a form of expression
Following your passion
Teachers’ guide
This guide includes questions and activities that you might adapt to engage students as they watch this short film.
Oran also joined us on the Arts in Junior Cycle podcast. Click on the link above to play the episode. Episode page available here.
About the artist
Oran is a professional Irish and contemporary dance artist.
He initially trained as a competitive Irish dancer and participated from local to international platforms for almost 18 years. During his career as a competitive dancer, Oran sought to explore movement through a more liberal and expressive style of dance.
He studied contemporary dance at the Dublin Youth Dance Company, under the mentorship of artistic director Mariam Ribón and went on to pursue an MA in Contemporary Dance Performance at the Irish World of Music and Dance, University of Limerick. During and since his time there, he has become increasingly interested in objects and concepts of gender in movement. Oran was selected for the Step Up: Dance Project 2017 where he worked with award-winning choreographers including Gary Clarke.
In this film, Oran speaks about his life as a dance artist. Through sharing his perspective of life as a dancer, Oran offers insights into the processes involved, successes and setbacks encountered which might prove useful for others as they journey into their own creative fields.
Arts in Action