Nearly every club in Laois has hosted a Lip Sync fundraiser over the last 12 months and any of them that have will more than likely have been tutored in their dance moves by Orna Phelan.
Talented, patient and a great teacher, she has put all sorts through their paces in rehearsals. Most of the time it has been in community halls, meeting rooms or dressing rooms. And more often than not she has made a silk purse out of a sow’s ear. The big night, invariably in a local hotel, has been a social highlight for communities and Orna, an excellent Irish dancer in her own right, can take a lot of the credit for the dance moves that are shown off on those occasions.
Now she has taken her skills to Africa. A primary school teacher in Portarlington, Orna is currently volunteering in Uganda with Terry Smeaton as part of the Nurture Africa programme and video has emerged of Orna going through a dance routine in a classroom in Kassengajje with kids to the ‘Happy’ song.
And it’s just like the dance lessons here – chaotic and out of sync but brilliant fun.
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