Catherine Esther Foley

Ethnchoreology, Dance Anthropology, Dance Ethnography, Dance Documentation and Analysis, Dance Performance, Dance and Identity, Dance and Politics, Dance and Gender, Dance and Globalisation, Irish Dance and World Dance. I established Erasmus Faculty Mobility partnerships with the following programmes: Roehampton University , London; Ege University, Izmir, Turkey;  Graz University, Austria.  I have taught on the ERASMUS IPEDAM 'New Ethnochoreologists' ten-day intensive programme at Trondheim University, Norway, from 2003-2013.  

Dr Catherine Foley designed and is course director of the MA in Ethnochoreology and the MA in Irish Traditional Dance Performance programmes at the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance, University of Limerick, Ireland. She is Founding Director of The National Dance Archive of Ireland, Founding Chair of Dance Research Forum Ireland, and Founding Director of the dance festival Trath na gCos. Catherine has published extensively including her two monographs, Irish Traditional Step Dancing in North Kerry (Book and DVD; North Kerry Literary Trust, 2012), and Step Dancing in Ireland: Culture and History (Ashgate Publishing Ltd., 2013). The latter was shortlisted for the Katherine Briggs Folklore Award. She has also published her research in international scholarly journals including Dance Research Journal, Yearbook for Traditional Music, Dance Research, and New Hibernia Review.    Catherine was Visiting Scholar at Indiana University in the US in 2013 and Visiting Professor at Roehampton University, London in 2014. Catherine has served on numerous professional boards: she is currently serving her second term as the elected Chair of the ICTM's Study Group on Ethnochoreology (2014-2022) and is an elected member of the ICTM's executive board (2017-2023); she is also on the board of directors of the Firkin Crane. She has served on boards of the Arts Council's funding awards schemes.   Catherine is also a dancer and musician.  She has choreographed original dance work including a newly commissioned set dance, The Sionna Set Dance, which was published by the Irish World Academy of Music and Dance as a multi-media educational package with Arts Council funding. She has also produced a solo DVD: Steip Damhsa: Irish Solo Traditional Set Dance and Step Dances (2015).  She is a frequent adjudicator of the annual nationally televised Oireachtas sean nós dance competitions,   In addition, Catherine has undertaken the role of Chair of the Local Arrangements Committee of a number of international conferences hosted at the University of Limerick. These include the 44th International Council for Traditional Music s World Conference (2017); Dance Research Forum Ireland s 1st International Conference (2006); and the Society of Dance History Scholar s Conference (2003). In this role, Catherine has received Fáilte Ireland regional and national awards for her work as a cultural ambassador.