Irish Dance Camp & Retreat
REO is hosting the sixth-annual Irish Dance Camp for youth, adults and their families. Call 1-800-736-7238 or email info@reorafting.com now to reserve your space.
Check out our photo gallery for pictures from previous Irish dance retreats at REO.Check out videos from this year's Irish Dance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gIk7We3bo4
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZJb4fX-vLr8
Cost, Dates and Details
July 27-Aug 1, 2008. $675 CDN person plus tax (all-inclusive). $600 CDN for non-dancers. Price subject to change without notice. 5% GST and 3% land & water access fees added to all prices.
Irish Dance Camp Includes:
- Daily dance instruction, Thursday night performance
- Fitness classes, foot spas, movie night, low ropes course, campfire activities
- 14 meals (dinner Sunday to breakfast Friday), snacks and beverages
- Shared cabin tent accommodation
- Full use of facilities including hot tub, cedar sauna, beach volleyball, private beach, flush toilets, and hot showers
- Course fees include t-shirt
- Free performance and discounted meals & camping for families on July 31, 2008
Whitewater rafting ($95 adults, $80 kids/youth), rock rappelling ($40), float trip ($80), lake kayaking ($80 - with a
minimum of 5 people) & massage (min age 18 yrs, $80/hr).Itinerary:
Sunday: 3 pm arrival and check-in; setup, orientation, dance session, dinner, and campfire games.
Monday: Dance instruction (4 hours), low ropes course, Pilates & movie night.Tuesday: Dance instruction (4 hours), Pilates & foot spa.
Wednesday: Dance instruction (4 hours) & Pilates. Outdoor slumber party in the rafts.
Thursday: Full-day dance rehearsal & practice. 8pm performance. FREE performance and discounted meals & camping for families of dancers.
Friday: Breakfast for dancers, optional rafting trip and overnight packages for dancers and their families.
Family options
Thursday, July 31, 2008- Option 1 - Watch the Irish Dance Performance for FREE. Check-in at REO at 8 pm and check-out at 10 pm.
- Option 2 - Overnight stay with 2 meals, $30. Check-in at 6 pm,
dinner, watch the performance, camp overnight, breakfast and check-out at 10 am. - Option 3 - Getaway package with 3 meals and rafting, $135 adults, $120 youth/kids. Check-in at 6 pm, dinner, watch the performance, camp overnight, breakfast, whitewater rafting, lunch and check-out at 3 pm.
Those families who wish to spend the all-inclusive week at REO as a non-dancer may do so for $600 CDN plus tax. Optional adventure activities available.
Payment and deposit
A $200 CDN non-refundable deposit per person is required to reserve your space in the camp. Full payment is required by June 27, 2008. Additional activities can be booked and paid for at the time you are booking the camp. Activities can also be booked and paid for after arrival at the resort. For all participants under the age of 12 years old we recommend a parent or guardian attend the camp. Parents, spouses and other family members may attend the retreat as a non-dance participant.
What to bring
Softshoes & hardshoes (old ones if possible), runners to dance in case of bad blisters, medical tape, tensor bandages, bandaids, comfortable clothes to practice in, and your school shorts & t-shirt with bubble socks for the show.For the resort stay, please bring personal items, camp clothing, swimsuit, shorts, sandals, hiking shoes, flashlight, snacks, cards, games, sleeping bag and pillow.
Dance camp details
The week-long Irish Dance Camp is being taught by award winning professional instructor, Michelle Kilby, TCRG, with over 26 years dance experience (see her dance resume below). Michelle will be assisted by Paula Swidzinski who attended the world Irish Dance Championships in April 2007 in Scotland and will be attending again in Ireland in 2008. The retreat is expected to draw participants from Europe, United States, and Canada. Our past retreats have attracted dancers from as far away as Switzerland.Our location at the edge of a rushing river is the perfect setting for a river dance. Each day, participants will enjoy four hours of dance training on our rivers edge stage. These workouts will be excellent aerobic exercise. Everyone who loves to dance is encouraged to attend the retreat even if they have no previous experience. All participants will be divided into small groups by level of experience for the daily instruction. At the end of the weeklong camp, the
In addition to the extraordinary wilderness setting, what makes the Irish Dance Retreat so special are the fun-filled team-building and outdoor adventures. Highlights of the week are whitewater rafting adventures on the Nahatlatch River, float raft trip on the Fraser River as well as the rock rappelling. Spare time is filled with foot spas, movie nights, low ropes team building course, pilates workouts, and an outdoor slumber party in the rafts (on the grass, no water!)
Meet your Instructors
Head Instructor - Michelle Kilby, TCRG
Michelle Kilby operates the Sionnaine Irish Dance Academy in the Greater Vancouver area. She started dancing with The Violet Moore School of Irish Dance at the age of four. She competed at the highest level of dance since the age of eleven and qualified for the World Irish Dancing Championships every year placing between 1st and 4th. She also competed nationally and internationally in such places as Vancouver, Victoria, Seattle, Edmonton, Calgary, Winnipeg, Toronto, Fort McMurray, Boston, San Diego, Orlando, California, and Ireland. Her awards for championships have totaled twenty-five 1st, fourteen 2nds, and nine 3rds. For solo and group competitions she has accumulated over 1,000 medals consisting of 1st to 4th placing. Michelle has participated in dancing workshops in London with the Maguire-Shea Academy of Irish Dance and also performed with Colin Dunn (lead male dancer of Riverdance). Michelle's last competition was at the National Championships in Vancouver 1997, where she placed 11th internationally out of 96 competitors and retired from competition to teach dancing.Michelle currently has 11 years teaching experience. She volunteered three years teaching (along side her teacher Violet Moore) in Vancouver, and has spent the last 9 years teaching on her own. Michelle has done workshop classes in Penticton, Surrey, Port Moody, and Burnaby for hundreds of students. She regularly performs with her students and other Irish dancers. As of September 2001, Michelle became a certified teacher (TCRG) through the Irish Dancing Commission. She now has over 100 students belonging to her very own school, the Sionnaine Irish Dance Academy, with classes in Abbottsford, Maple Ridge, and Vancouver.
Local and International Performance Experience of Michelle Kilby:
- Expo 86 Vancouver
- Merritt Mountain Music Festival
- Vicky Gaboreau Show
- GENIE Awards
- BC Country Music Awards
- BC's Fiddling Championships
- NHL/NFL/CFL Association
- Pan Pacific/Westin Hotels
- APEC Conference
- Whistler Resort
- Pacific National Exhibition
- Vancouver Club
- Dublin Gate Irish Pub
- Plaza of Nations
- Whistler Golf Club
- Molson Canadian Beer Commercial
- Trade & Convention Centre
- Capilano Suspension Bridge
- Queen Elizabeth Theatre
- Orpheum Theatre
- Commodore Ballroom
- Commonwealth Games
- BC Stadium/BC Place
- H. Goessler AG (Zurich)
- Percussion Ensemble (Switzerland)
Michelle's philosophy towards Irish Dancing is that anyone can do it at any age and when you get the dancing and music in your blood, you just can't let it go.
For more information on Michelle check out her website. The Sionnaine Irish Dance Academy:
www.sionnaine-academy.com
Assistant Instructor - Paula Swidzinski
Paula started dancing at the age of 3. She began with the art of Jazz, Tap and Musical Theatre and later added Ballet, Lyrical Jazz, Modern and Hip Hop. With these forms of dance, Paula competed locally and nationally, won numerous awards and scholarships, participated in various workshops within North America and performed at many events like Expo 86, the Councilor’s Ball and The Wedding Fair (Vancouver). Her talents have also landed her some roles as a Special Skills Extra in some TV series and films such as Breaker High, Police Academy the TV Series, Drive She Said, and The Greg Louganis Story to name a few. Paula started assistant teaching in Jazz and Tap when she was 13 years old. She was then offered to teach her own classes a few years later and has been instructing since.Paula eventually discovered a form of dance she had not yet mastered, the art of Irish dancing. Once she saw Riverdance, the movie, and later went to see Michael Flatley perform in Lord of the Dance (Vancouver), she was in total awe of this form of dance and had to start taking lessons. In 1999, she started taking a recreational class in Langley with Michelle Kilby as her instructor. June of 2000 was her first competition of which, to her amazement, placed in all of her dances. Michelle then encouraged Paula to start taking a second class a week in Abbotsford to better her technique and help her move higher in the levels of Irish dancing. Since then, she has been to many competitions and is now a Championship Irish Dancer.
This is Paula’s 4th year of instructing Irish dance under the supervision of Michelle Kilby, TCRG. Combined with Paula’s knowledge of injury prevention, pedagogy and various techniques of other forms of dance, she feels she can offer students a wonderful, safe and healthy atmosphere in Irish dance. Paula is also taking her own classes 3 times a week in hopes of achieving her goals of becoming an Open Championship level dancer, as well as competing in the North American Nationals & World Championships.
REO Youth Retreat Policies
REO has worked with youth through various school and family groups for 20 years. REO school clients include St. George's, Little Flower Academy, Meadowridge School Society, the Fraser Valley Christian School and many community recreation organizations.REO Guides selected to work with kids are typically our most-experienced guides and have previous experience in working with families, youth groups and schools. Most importantly, they enjoy working with youth and are selected based on their maturity, enthusiasm and patience. It should also be noted that several of our youth camp guides are also parents.
REO has established resort policies to address the safety and well-being of its guests including youth while at the resort. REO employees will discuss all of the resort policies upon check-in and endeavor to make sure that youth follow the policies. All parents or guardians must sign a waiver and liability release form prior to their child's enrollment in the adventure camps. REO is not responsible for actions deliberately taken by youth that conflict with the established guidelines.
REO expects that all youth, regardless of age, bring a reasonable level of maturity and discipline. Youth that continually break the policies and guidelines of the resort or exhibit unacceptable behavior will be excused from the program at the discretion of the Youth Program Director. While at the resort, supervision is the direct responsibility of Dance School Instructors, adult supervisors and parents. At least one dance instructor or supervisor will be available for every 10 students. The instructors and supervisors will camp in separate tents near the youth accommodation. Generally, all youth will be lodged in cabin tents that feature either 4 twin beds (standard) or 6-8 twin beds (large). These cabin tents are clustered in the family camping area that is located on the lower level near public washrooms.
REO does not generally provide exclusivity and others will likely be staying at the resort at the same time. REO requires that the instructors and supervisors of the dance school and accompanying parents provide resort supervision. We recommend sleep times from 10:30 PM to 7:30 AM. Please note that adults may be consuming alcohol in public areas of the resort and thus it is expected that the parents and leaders provide supervision.
REO Safety & Experience
REO is a leader in safety and service with 26 years of operating experience. REO has maintained and unblemished operating record due to the company's commitment and leadership in setting company safety standards and operating procedures.All REO trips in BC follow all previous guidelines set out by the BC Commercial River Rafting legislation. Each river section that REO runs has specific regulations that are in place to enhance safety. Furthermore, a safety kayaker accompanies all REO trips on the Nahatlatch River. This increases the safety margin on all trips and provides a better guest-to-guide ratio.
All REO trips are accompanied by at least one guide certified in Wilderness First Aid. Each guide has a valid first aid certification as a minimum standard, although many guides have advanced WFA or OFA training. A first aid/ambulance station is located in Boston Bar, BC (16 kms) and a full-service hospital in Hope, BC (82 kms).
Guest-to-guide ratios are subject to the number of total participants, weather and water levels. REO typically provides a 6:1 guest-to-guide ratio on all whitewater rafting, lake kayaking and rock rappelling trips: a 5:1 guest-to-guide ratio on whitewater kayaking trips or instruction; and a 10:1 ratio on wilderness hikes and scenic float adventures.
Most REO guides have Rescue 3 Swiftwater Rescue certification. This training is more relevant in a moving water environment than lifeguard certification. All REO guests must wear government-approved life jackets, wet suits, and helmets to participate on a whitewater river rafting trip.
REO requires a minimum standard of one adult per 10 youth for the resort stay. For a group of 40 youth, for example, the organization or school should provide at least 4 adults including the instructors that are in charge of supervising and monitoring youth while at the resort. These adults do not necessarily need to participate in the scheduled activities. However, REO requests a minimum of 1 adult per 20 youth to participate in the scheduled activities or adventures. This ratio depends on the ages of the youth, the size of the group, and the difficulty of the activity. Generally, the younger the youth, or the more difficult the activity, the more supervision is requested.
Prior to booking a youth or school group, parents and youth leaders are made aware of the wilderness setting of the REO Rafting Adventure Resort and specific resort information relevant to the resort's location. The resort is accessible by a gravel road, 16 kms north of Boston Bar, BC (3 hours from Vancouver). The nearest full-service hospital is one hour to 1.5 hours away depending on the location of the activity. The resort provides its own power generation, approved water system (water is purified by a reverse-osmosis system), radio-telephone communications (regular telephone service is not available), and approved septic system (the resort offers flush toilets, hot showers, a hot tub, and sauna).