CURRENTLY UNDER CONSTRUCTION

Sheila has been dancing since she was 5 years old.  Tap dancing as a youth led her to explore other genres of percussive dance as an adult.  She has been the artistic director for several dance teams since the 1980s.  She has taught countless dance workshops, and mentored many individuals along the way. 

Sheila is a 2023 Michigan Heritage Award (MHA) recipient.  The MHA is the highest recognition for a traditional artist in the state of Michigan.

Emily discovered percussive dance in 6th grade when she saw a tap performance in the Wines talent show. She took tap with Susan Filipiak and later Appalachian clogging with Connie Jo Ferguson. Upon returning to Michigan in 2012, she began dancing again, including tap, clogging, and Irish.

Emily has performed with the CDC since 2016 and completed a Michigan Traditional Arts Apprenticeship with Sheila in 2017. She volunteers as a clogging instructor for Ann Arbor Rec & Ed.

Meagan began Irish dancing at 11 years old. She has danced with Ardan Academy of Irish Dance, Irish Dance Company of Lansing, Leim Irish Dance at the University of Michigan, and McCartney Irish Dance. In 2017, she began studying old-style Irish step dancing and the improvisational form of sean-nós dancing with Kieran Jordan and Rebecca McGowan.

In 2023, Meagan joined the CDC. She also serves on the Board of the Ann Arbor Community for Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD).

At age 6, Maeve began Irish step dancing and danced with the O’Hare School of Irish Dance until she was 16. She took a brief hiatus while in college, then started contra dancing in 2014, which re-introduced her to folk dance and music where she began learning Appalachian clogging.

Maeve joined the CDC in 2022. She is also a Contra and English Country Dance caller and serves on the Board of the Ann Arbor Community for Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD).

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Dance has been a lifelong passion of Diane's, starting with the foundation of tap throughout her childhood. Her interests as an adult have ranged from swing, Lindy Hop, and Cuban Salsa, to flatfooting, tap, and clogging. She began performing with the CDC in 2023. In addition to percussive dance, she currently enjoys Cuban Rueda, Contra, Zumba, and rock and roll/blues dancing. 

Emma’s interest in folk dance and music began in college when she was introduced to contra dancing in New England. After moving to Ann Arbor for graduate school, she learned additional forms of folk dance, including English country dancing and Appalachian clogging.

Emma joined the CDC jn 2021 and completed an apprenticeship with Sheila focused on Ottawa Valley step dancing and the historic Marley dances from the Vaudeville era. She also organizes contra dances and served as the president of the Ann Arbor Community for Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD). 

V is a fiddle player with a background in classical music, having completed a Bachelor of Music from Western Michigan University and a Master's in Music from Florida State University. While an undergrad, V began performing with a local trad Irish band in Kalamazoo and discovered a love for Celtic-style fiddle playing. Since completing their Master's, V has taught privately along with performing with the CDC and several local and regional bands. 

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Nate has been playing fiddle since he was ten years old. In high school, he joined the Saline Fiddlers Philharmonic and subsequently was introduced to Appalachian clogging. After taking a hiatus during college, he returned to Saline and has since been performing with the CommonWealth Dance Collective and some other groups, including the Stout-Hearted String Band and Pearl Street String Band.

Myron’s musical background crosses many styles, starting with church choir when he was a kid, to rock-and-roll, folk, country, bluegrass, contra, swing, and jazz.  He has been playing professionally since 1968, starting with the rock band Loves Alchemy until 1973. With the Commonwealth Dance Collective, Myron has been playing guitar and harmonica since 2004 along with a fiddler, currently with Brad Battey who is also in Big Fun.

Brad is an accomplished, innovative fiddler of many styles from contra and square dance music, to English, swing, and Scandinavian. While he typically plays the fiddle, he has also been known to play nyckelharpa for English and Scandinavian couple dancing.  Based in Ann Arbor, MI, he is a pillar of the Michigan traditional music and dance community and has played for many Ann Arbor Community for Traditional Music and Dance (AACTMAD) dances.