was not a step dancer but enjoyed participating in the regular Irish social dances called céilí( pronounced“ kay-lee”) in London. The two met at one of these dances and eventually married.
Though Celia and Peter loved London, there was a shortage of housing after the war, and they wanted to raise a family. They emigrated to the U. S. in 1957 to find work, and settled in Dormont. The couple went on to have eight children and were instrumental in the establishment of the Pittsburgh Irish Centre. All eight of the Shovlin children took step dancing classes at the Irish Centre. Three of them, Peter, Sheila and Liz, decided to open their own school of dance in Dormont in 1999. The Shovlin Academy of Irish Dance— or Scoil Rince na Tri Abhainn, which is Gaelic for Dance School of the Three Rivers— has been very successful in popularizing Irish step dancing in southwestern Pennsylvania.
Sheila has won both national and international competitions, and all three of the Shovlins are certified instructors in step dancing.
Peter has moved on to other opportunities, while Liz takes care of much of the administration of the school, and Sheila is responsible for all of the wonderful choreography that the students perform.
The school welcomes both boys and girls from age 5 to about 18. Liz explains that as students enter college, they often move away or become busy with other things, although many of them return to dance when possible.
Students generally attend lessons one to three times a week, and the school offers both private and group classes. Although competing is not required, the school encourages participation in the competitions called feis( pronounced“ fesh”).
A big part of Irish tradition is sharing music, culture, storytelling and dance with the community. Performances and competitions can help students gain confidence in every area of their lives.
Liz adds,“ Competition also ensures that they don’ t become complacent but are always striving to learn more.
“ We’ re a dance family, really. We see these kids every week and we see their families and get to know them as well. We often see each other outside of classes.”
The students learn reels, jigs, treble jigs, and hornpipes, which have different time signatures and rhythms. Steps are done on both the right and left leg, which helps develop coordination on both sides of the body. The instructors also assist the students in developing jumping ability in a safe way to help avoid injuries. Step dancing is great exercise!
The elaborate costumes worn at competitions can certainly be a beautiful part of the overall presentation of dancing, but, according to Liz,“ at the end of the day, they’ re really just looking at your feet.”
There are students who compete at the local level in“ blackout” costumes where they are clad in black from head to toe. This draws even more attention to the fancy footwork.
With St. Patrick’ s Day approaching, it’ s a busy time of year for the Shovlins.“ It’ s not St. Patrick’ s Day— for us, it’ s St. Patrick’ s season!” says Liz. The dancers start performing for the holiday the third week of February. Later in the year they will participate in the Pittsburgh Irish Festival.
The Shovlin Academy website( shovlinacademy. com) has a list of public performances where you can experience the excitement of Irish step dancing firsthand. There are also clips of the students’ performances on Instagram, and on Facebook at facebook. com / shovlinacademyofirishdance. n
CARLYNTON-MONTOUR ❘ SPRING 2026 9