Trinity Irish Dance Company (TIDC), the uniquely Irish-American company that celebrates Founding Artistic Director Mark Howard’s pioneering vision to fuse vibrant Irish traditions with ever-evolving innovation, will make its Jacob’s Pillow Dance Festival debut this summer with six performances, July 10-13. Hailed as “a stunning program of groundbreaking dance” by Broadway World and “irresistible” by Dance Magazine, the company’s performances will mark the first time that the renowned dance festival, located in Becket, Massachusetts, has presented a full program of Irish dance on the Ted Shawn Theatre stage.
“Mark has dedicated his life to presenting Irish dance as serious art. His consistency at choosing substance over spectacle and the confidence to know where the art form should go next is exactly why his unparalleled body of work is being celebrated on one of the world’s most highly respected dance stages,” said Associate Artistic Director Chelsea Hoy. “I am especially grateful for Trinity’s legacy to be honored in this way amidst our 35th Anniversary Season.”
Founded in 1990, TIDC is the birthplace of progressive Irish dance, Howard’s innovative movement genre that “ushered in a new era for Irish step dance” (Chicago Tribune). Considered an American treasure by critics and enthusiasts worldwide, TIDC has performed sold-out tours globally, carving new traditions as they push the boundaries of a traditional and beloved art form.
“I’m ecstatic for 35 years worth of artists, board members and staff that have lent their collective talents to the wave of positive energy that has always pushed Trinity’s work to increasingly higher ground,” added Founding Artistic Director Mark Howard. “The protection of the ancestors will be with us at the Pillow, along with the hopes of Yates and O’Casey and the dreams of the Sineads and Shanes.”
TIDC’s mixed program at Jacob’s Pillow will showcase the range of its genre-defying repertoire, celebrating their internationally renowned vision of pushing the boundaries of a cultural form while maintaining a strong reverence for its traditions. Among the works presented will be Howard’s Soles, a tribal and timeless rhythmic study; Howard’s Push, an explosion of hard-driving percussive power that demonstrates the company’s consistent message of female empowerment; and Michelle Dorrance and Melinda Sullivan's American Traffic, a hybrid of Irish step and American tap that plays at the intersection of rhythmic sensibilities and rebellious histories. The program will feature original music performed live by TIDC’s band, fronted by Killarney-raised, New York City-based Brenoshea. For tickets or more information, visit https://www.jacobspillow.org/events/trinity-irish-dance-company/.
"Trinity Irish Dance Company embodies the spirit of tradition and innovation that we look for," said Jacob’s Pillow’s Executive and Artistic Director Pamela Tatge. “The company's commitment to blending the bold energy of Irish dance with contemporary sensibilities is unmatched. Audiences will be swept up by dancers and musicians who perform with extraordinary skill and passion. We can’t wait to celebrate their 35th Anniversary with their Jacob’s Pillow debut.”
The Jacob’s Pillow performances represent another milestone in the company’s 35th Anniversary Season, which will kick off with performances at Chicago’s Museum of Contemporary Art, 220 E. Chicago Ave, May 16-18. This four-performance home season will feature the world premiere of “The Sash,” choreographed by Mark Howard, Associate Artistic Director Chelsea Hoy and guest contemporary choreographer Stephanie Martinez, founder and Artistic Director of Chicago’s PARA.MAR Dance Theatre, as well as other company highlights. For more details and tickets, visit https://trinityirishdancecompany.com/performances/.
ABOUT TRINITY IRISH DANCE COMPANY
The Chicago-based Trinity Irish Dance Company has been recognized as the high watermark of the art form; a uniquely Irish-American dance legacy that is rooted in tradition, yet forward-looking and ever-evolving. The result is a fresh, engaging, and integrity-filled vision that goes beyond the source without losing touch with its essence. Founded in 1990 as a way to celebrate Founding Artistic Director Mark Howard’s pioneering vision, TIDC is the birthplace of progressive Irish dance, an innovative movement genre which opened new avenues of artistic freedom that led directly to commercial productions such as “Riverdance.” TIDC has significantly changed the direction and scope of Irish dance, re-introducing the art form as the phenomenon it is today. With a unique blend of uncompromising power and grace, TIDC sends a consistent message of female empowerment with a repertory that has elevated the art form for three and a half decades. For more information, visit TrinityIrishDanceCompany.com and follow us on Facebook or Instagram.
ABOUT JACOB’S PILLOW
Jacob’s Pillow is a National Historic Landmark, recipient of the National Medal of Arts, and home to America's longest-running international dance festival, which celebrates its 93rd season in Summer 2025. Jacob’s Pillow acknowledges that it rests on the ancestral homelands of the Muh-he-con-ne-ok or Mohican people. We pay honor and respect to their ancestors and elders past and present as we commit to building a more inclusive and equitable space for all. In addition, we acknowledge the Nipmuc, the Wampanoag and other tribal nations who also made their homes in what is now known as Massachusetts.
Founded by Ted Shawn in 1933, each Festival includes national and international dance companies and free and ticketed performances, talks, tours, classes, exhibits, events, and community programs. The School at Jacob’s Pillow, a prestigious professional dance training center, advances the careers of the upcoming generation of performers and choreographers; during the Festival, 100 international dancers evolve as artists in ballet, choreography, contemporary, musical theatre, tap, and other genres, and year round, artist faculty and accomplished alumni nurture younger dancers in a series of Jacob’s Pillow 360 workshops and intensives offered in partnership with leading dance institutions worldwide. The Pillow also provides professional advancement opportunities across disciplines of arts administration, design, video, and production through seasonal internships and a year-round Administrative Fellows program. Through its community engagement programs, the Pillow serves as a partner and active citizen in its local community. The Pillow’s extensive Archives, open year-round to the public and highlighted online at danceinteractive.jacobspillow.org, chronicle more than a century of dance in photographs, programs, books, costumes, audiotapes, and videos.
Notable artists who have created or premiered dances at the Pillow include choreographers Antony Tudor, Agnes de Mille, Alvin Ailey, Donald McKayle, Kevin McKenzie, Twyla Tharp, Ralph Lemon, Susan Marshall, Trisha Brown, Ronald K. Brown, Wally Cardona, Andrea Miller, and Trey McIntyre; performed by artists such as Mikhail Baryshnikov, Carmen de Lavallade, Mark Morris, Dame Margot Fonteyn, Edward Villella, Rasta Thomas, and hundreds of others. On March 2, 2011, President Barack Obama honored Jacob’s Pillow with a National Medal of Arts, the highest arts award given by the United States Government, making the Pillow the first dance presenting organization to receive this prestigious award. The Pillow’s Executive and Artistic Director since 2016 is Pamela Tatge. For more information, visit www.jacobspillow.org.
MAJOR INSTITUTIONAL SUPPORT FOR JACOB’S PILLOW IS GENEROUSLY PROVIDED BY: Arison Arts Foundation, Barr Foundation, Bloomberg Philanthropies, Doris Duke Foundation, Ford Foundation, John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, Mellon Foundation, National Endowment for the Arts, National Endowment for the Humanities, and The Shubert Foundation. As of January 28, 2025.