The truest expression of a people is in its dance and in its music. Bodies never lie. — Agnes de Mille 
 

By Megan Mueller

If you were watching "Dancing with the Stars" last April, you would have seen Sean Beglan. Even if you don't watch "Dancing with the Stars," you could have seen him as the male lead in Riverdance, in the Pirate Queen, at Milwaukee Irish Fest, on a variety of shows like "Good Morning America" and "The Today Show," or at a various Milwaukee pubs such as Paddy's Pub or Brocach. Beglan began dancing at age 4 in Cavan, Co. Cavan, and danced around the world with various productions. 

Beglan started dancing at O'Reilly School of Irish Dance in Cavan the day his mother sent him with his older sister, Patricia, to her dance class. He brought several of his friends with him and recalls that he danced for about half the class and played hide-and-seek for the other half. Even though he loved dancing, during the warm summer months he often missed class to go fishing or camp by a lake. 

In Ireland, dancing is popular with both men and women. Beglan states that "In Ireland, admit it or not, everyone tries dancing at one time or another." Despite the fact that two of his brothers and one sister danced, only Beglan pursued it. At age 9, he placed in the top 10 at theLeinster, All-Ireland, North American and World championships of Irish dance. His mother still has his many of his trophies and medals on display in Ireland, but between his and Patricia's trophies, she ran out of room to display them all. 

He came to the United States for the American Nationals when he was 10, and began touring internationally with various groups at age 15. In 1998, he visited Milwaukee with a group from Tipperary to perform at Irish Fest. His wife, Jillian Winke from Wauwatosa, Wisconsin, claims she saw him perform there, though they did not formally meet until several years later. Winke began Irish dancing at the age of 9 with the Cashel-Dennehy School of Irish Dance. She competed in North American, Ireland and Europe, placing in the top three in the North American Irish Dance Championships. She was asked to join Riverdance at age 17.

Beglan joined Riverdance when he was 17 as well and rapidly ascended to role of male lead. He says that learning dance was "a recreation, a hobby, but when Riverdance came out, it was a big boom - it just took off. Irish dance has become not so much a hobby as a demanding art form." His first performance of Riverdance was in Milwaukee at the Riverside Theater. 

Two years later, Winke joined the production. Beglan and Winke met, fell in love and toured with Riverdance together for two years before returning to Milwaukee to get married. Although he misses the show, Beglan doesn't miss the extensive touring. "You start to crave the simple things," he says, "like a refrigerator. If Riverdance was in Milwaukee permanently and I could dance with them during the day and teach in the evenings, that would be fine with me."

Despite being married, Beglan did not exactly "settle down." After running into Derek Byrne, a musician from Riverdance, at a performance of Celtic Woman, he began dancing at various pubs with Eidir, the Irish instrumental duo of Byrne and Jim Wirk. He continued to perform at Irish Fest each year. For a year, he danced in The Pirate Queen, which debuted in Chicago in 2006. 

On his return to Milwaukee, Beglan began to perform pub shows with Byrne after Eidir broke up. There is a distinct difference between performing for the crowds of Riverdance and those at the pub venues, he points out. While Riverdance remained the same from performance to performance, the pub shows are different every time. "We see what the audience is feeling like that night and we fine-tune our show to what they want to hear and see," Beglan says.

Dancing on television also greatly differs from the Riverdance stage. Beglan and his wife joked about the fact that "If you fall on stage, you can crawl off into the wings, but on live TV,there are millions watching." There is also the difference in the size of the audience. "In a theater, you are there to entertain and perform and the audience responds. On TV, there is little or no audience at all. There is silence, or maybe the camera guy claps." he chuckles. The performance went off without a hitch, without a single fall, and the whole studio audience clapped, not just the cameraman.

Beglan and his wife's performance on Dancing with the Stars brought additional interest to Irish dancing, and the camera crews followed them back to Milwaukee to talk with their students at the Rince Nia Academy, much to the youngsters' delight. 

The Beglans opened Rince Nia in 2007 on Water Street in Milwaukee's Old Third Ward. They gradually expanded to a second studio in Mequon, and opened a third in Glendale near Bayshore after closing the first studio. There are classes for ages 4 to adult for both recreation and competition. While most students are youths, the adult classes are popular with a wide range of ages. Beglan recalls teaching a woman in her 80s. 

It requires a great deal of attention to work with such a variety of students, but Beglan says the key for the students is "patience." 

"A lot of kids want to jump and start and fly straight to the top, but you need to set a good foundation or you'll hit a stone wall. Everyone learns differently and at a different pace. In the end, they're all going to the same destination, just taking different routes along the way." explains Beglan. He works to bring the best out in his dancers by not using the same step classwide. "You have to do what is best for the dancers." This summer will be the first appearance of the Rince Nia Academy at Irish Fest. 

Since many of the classes are in the evening, Beglan spends his days teaching Irish dance in area elementary school physical education programs. He is currently teaching at Parkway School, in the Glendale-River Hills School District. Beglan will remain there for about a month before he moves on to teach at another school. 

Beglan continues to compete internationally, but although he misses being part of a large production, it is unlikely he will be returning to the stage anytime soon. He and his wife are expecting their first child in March, though "hopefully not on St. Patrick's Day," since they are already busy performing and celebrating on that High Holy Day. 

He plans to continue teaching at elementary schools and Rince Nia with his wife as well as performing with Byrne and at Irish Fest. Beglan will continue to dance "as long as his knees hold up," which is a time period he hopes the difficult Wisconsin winters won't shorten. 

Beglan and his wife return to Ireland periodically to visit as well as compete. Although he misses Ireland, Beglan has found a home in Milwaukee and is grateful for organizations like the Shamrock Club, Irish Cultural & Heritage Center, the pubs where he and Byrne perform, as well as Irish Fest. "They really keep the spirit of Ireland alive in Milwaukee, supporting groups like Derek and myself and staying involved. Without their support, the Irish communitymight not be what it is," he concludes
 
 

For more information on Rince Nia, visit www.rincenia.com or call (414) 243-3515.