Planxty Podcast

In part two of our chat with feis musician, composer, teacher, and adjudicator Francis Ward, we do a deep dive on the legacy of his composition, the Vanishing Lake. Francis gives us the background on how the piece came to be included in the CLRG set dance canon and his thought-process while composing it. We also talk about his commissioned work, Planxty Ar Sarsfield, part of the Cuimhnigh ar Sarsf...

In part one of this two-part interview with Dr. Francis Ward, Julia gets far too excited to nerd out with another ethnomusicologist. We chat about Francis' early foray into traditional Irish music and dance, his experience at University of Limerick, how to inspire students to find passion and drive in pursuit of music and dance, the evolution of tradition in Irish dance, and so much more. Francis'...

In this episode of Planxty, we talk to the world-renowned Irish dance artist, choreographer, educator, and creative producer Ciara Sexton. Tune in hear about her myriad projects - including her children's book, My First Book of Irish Dance (available here: https://a.co/d/04VNHnyQ) and her upcoming preschool YouTube series It's Time to Dance with Ciara. We cover so much in this episode, including h...

This month, Julia and Kristo chat with Brian O'Sullivan, a feis musician, actor, comedian, and fellow podcaster. Tune in and hear about Brian's earliest feis memories, his take on musical storytelling and the development of his musical style, and how playing music in the immersive sphere of the feis can become a transendential experience. Be sure to check out Brian's long running podcast Putting i...

Part 2 of 2: Your hosts deliver their recap of CLRG Worlds 2026 and all the amazingness it was, before rolling part 2 of their conversation with Cormac O'Se & Natalie Nugent O'Shea. In this half of the conversation, they dig deeper into teaching, team building and community and talk about the origin and future of the Celtic Junction Arts Center.

Part 1 of 2: Julia and Kristo sit down with friends, collaborators and colleagues Cormac O'Se & Natalie Nugent O'Shea to talk Irish dance teaching, the different paths that led them both to Riverdance, and the value of dance and music productions for their school. And, if you listen for it you may hear sounds of the remodel taking place at the Celtic Junction Arts Center. More on that in Part...

Co-founders of the FEIS app and FEIStv, Sean O'Brien and Liam O'Sullivan sit down with Julia and Kristo and share their different paths to traditional Irish music and the world of Irish dance, and do a deep dive into composing and performing as world-class feis musicians.

Recorded nearly one year ago, Scott Doherty was Julia and Kristo's first podcast guest! The episode and the podcast are finally here. Scott is a mindset coach, a World Irish Dance Champion, a professional dancer, a dance teacher and the list goes on. We were glad to have him on to share his perspective and creative approach to working with dancers and families.

Julia and Kristo sit down with Colleen Falco, Founder and Creative Director, and Hollie Geraghty, Editor-In-Chief of The Irish Dance Globe! Colleen and Hollie share how ID Globe has evolved, their creative and editorial process, the reality of pouring so much passion into the Irish Dance world while balancing life and full-time work, and why they think they'll always be involved this amazingly ric...

After months of discussion and development, Julia and Kristo finally sit down together to talk about their own Irish dance journeys, their shared passion for exploring and telling the stories of people involved in the multifaceted world of Irish dance. 

Welcome to the Planxty Podcast! This teaser trailer episode will give you a taste of what's to come on this podcast as we explore the rich tapestry of Irish Dance and talk with the people who love it.  Meet hosts Julia Topper and Kristo Sween and hear samples from upcoming episodes with guests Sean O'Brien, Liam O'Sullivan, Scott Doherty, Colleen Falco, Hollie Geraghty, Cormac O'Se and Natalie Nug...