WATCH: These Irish dancers are kicking high for St. Patrick's Day

• Difference between Irish dance and River dancing
• Where to see local Irish dancing on St Patrick’s Day

A local dance troupe is excited to wow crowds again with appearances that are two years overdue because of the pandemic.

“This will be the first time going back out and doing performances; especially for St Patrick’s Day,” Ticalie Irish Dance Academy owner Tia Jervis, told Kelowna10. She’s been training since she was three years old.

“This is our biggest performance season of the year. We’re really looking forward to it.”

Irish dancing was popularized by the River Dance phenomenon with Michael Flatley in the 90’s.

However, the traditional style differs from Riverdance in that they don’t use their hands. With their arms at their side, the movement is strictly from the waist down.

It was around this time two years ago when the COVID-19 pandemic shut down the world. Ticalie, which had only been in operation for little more than a year, was preparing for a busy St Patrick’s Day around Kelowna.

“Basically, right up until the last minute we were practicing and then things got shut down and the girls were quite disappointed,” Jervis said.

This month however is a much busier time for the academy. Jervis nicknames it ‘March Madness’

“All of a sudden everything started opening back up. Everyone was like, ‘oh my gosh, we got to get back out there.’ So, let’s lace up those dance shoes,” she said.

“Honestly, these kids, the look on their faces to be able to do what they love is absolutely the best thing ever.”

The costumes for Irish dance can be elaborate. It would take Jervis’ mom about a month to hand-make a performance dress.

On Thursday, Kelowna can expect to see sparkly buckles, Swarovski crystals, and wigs adorning the performers as they dazzle around town at many of the businesses who booked them in 2020.

Ali Fuoco is a dancer and competitor with Ticalie. She’s also been training since she was a toddler.

“[St Patrick’s Day] is one of my favorite times of year,” she said. “It was big when I was really young. We used to do around 15 performances. Since it’s just opening up, we have around eight.”

The full list of performance locations and times can be found on Ticalie’s website.