Highland dance duo leaps to new heights

Scottish Highland Dancers representing the Centre for Dance & the Performing Arts in Oakland have been impressing on a local, regional and national scale for a number of years.

Now, the studio can claim a first: Courtney McHale placed first in the 16 and under-18 division at the Southeast Regional Championships in Savannah, Georgia, last month. That distinguishes McHale, 15, as the first champion to train under teacher/coach Dr. Kathryn Austin.

The impressive achievement came as a pleasant surprise for McHale, a rising junior at West Orange High, after several years of being a contender for the title.

“It was very exciting, and I didn’t expect it,” McHale said, acknowledging a tough, competitive field that she had to beat.

McHale wasn’t alone in having a successful showing at the Southeast Regional, either.

Maggie Scott, an incoming sixth-grader at SunRidge Middle, placed second in the 10 and under-12 age group, meaning both girls have qualified for USIR 2017 Highland Dance Championships in July in Salt Lake City, Utah.

“It’s always a nice feeling when you qualify, so I was happy,” said Scott, 11.

“It’s a lot of jumping, so you have to have a lot of stamina and you have be able to jump high and elongate your legs — it’s mostly stamina and strength."

— Courtney McHale

For McHale, Scottish dancing has become a competitive passion. Although she regularly practices other types of dance — for instance, she just began a three-week ballet-based intensive at Florida State University — she has become dedicated to the craft of Scottish Highland dancing after taking it up at age 9.

“It’s a lot of jumping, so you have to have a lot of stamina and you have be able to jump high and elongate your legs — it’s mostly stamina and strength,” McHale said. “People say I have a lot of power, so I’m able to do dances for a long time and make it look easy.”

For Scott, who took up the style at age 6, it has become a fun way to branch out and make new acquaintances. 

“I like how we can meet different people when we go to different competitions,” Scott said.

The two girls, both ranked among the top 100 in the country in their respective age groups, each have heightened aspirations as they return to the national championships. Although they compete at different levels, they practice together and say the in-house competition has been beneficial.

“Courtney is a really good dancer, so it is always nice to have somebody to look up to,” Scott said.

For more information about Oakland’s Centre for Dance & the Performing Arts, visit dancecdpa.com or call (407) 877-3388. 

Contact Steven Ryzewski at [email protected].