Fred Nguyen Takes
the Irish Dancing World by Storm
VANCOUVER - After a fourth place medal at the World Irish Dancing Championships this past spring in Scotland, Fred Nguyen of the De Danaan School of Irish Dance in Burnaby
went on to win the North American Championships.
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FRED NGUYEN winner of the North American Championships with teachers, Leslie Wilson, TCRG and Stephen McAteer, ADCRG.
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In fact, Fred has been on the podium for every major event he has ever attended. He has won the Western Canadian Championships each year and has won second place twice at the Nationals before winning it this past summer in Ottawa, Ontario.
Being in the top five at the World's was certainly a highlight and created a real buzz in the Irish dancing world. Until now, the reaction has been "Wow! Who is he? Where did he come from?" Now, people know Fred Nguyen.
In addition to his unique style and mature comprehension of the intricacies of the footwork which are beyond this 13-year-old's years and relative inexperience compared to others in his age group, Fred exudes joy in his dance.
"He's actually not a very competitive person," says dance instructor, Leslie Wilson, "for him, it's about the joy he gets from the challenge of perfectly executing each movement or rhythm pattern. And when he's done that, he just loves to experiment and see where he can take it. He's remarkable."
For Fred it's all about fun - and he thinks hard work is fun. If he can work his steps to absolute perfection and evoke a cheer from the audience, it's all worthwhile. His radiant smile and stylish feet have won him the hearts of the whole international Irish dancing community.
The disproportionately loud applause and screams of support for Fred as he stepped out for his turn at the "Parade of Champions" at the North American Champions is a testament to the general goodwill people feel towards this young Vietnamese-Canadian leprechaun.
"The funnest part was dancing my heart out. I knew it was a lucky day because my competitor number was 21 and the date was 07/07/07 so it all added up. And anyway, it was my teacher's birthday.
"The best part was getting to dance in the Parade of Champions with Simona, Gerard, and Fiona. They're amazing and I really wanted to dance with them," says Fred, referring to first place winners of their age categories Simona Mauriello from the Maguire-O'Shea School in London; Gerard Carson of the Doherty-Reid School in Belfast, and Fiona Dargan from Rince na Tiarna in New York.
Fred had his first foray into the world of Irish dancing at age seven at a lunchtime dance program at his school where he learned some basic steps. After a couple of months, his family moved out of the district and it was three years later that his school teacher (an Irish céilí dancer herself) taught some céilís to her students. When the music went on Fred burst out into dance. His teacher, recognizing his talent, arranged to get him in touch with his earlier dance teacher Leslie Wilson...and the rest is history!
At age 11, he placed second at the Nashville North Americans, and there has been no stopping him since. He has had quarterly workshops with two-time former world champion Stephen McAteer from Toronto; and at Céilí Irish Music and Dance Camp, an annual event organized by his teacher each summer in Harrison Hot Springs; he has worked with the former lead of Riverdance and world champion Conor Hayes, and three-time former world champion, Ellie Maguire.
So what's in the future for Fred? "I'm excited to go to Killarney in February. It'll be my first time at the All-Ireland Championships. And then I have to go right back again in March for the Worlds in Belfast. I haven't been to Ireland yet."
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