McTeggart Irish Dancers

The McTeggart Irish Dancers of South Texas (MIDOST), based in The Woodlands TX (North Houston) is a not-for-profit organization recognized as tax-exempt under Internal Revenue Code section 501(c)(3).  We are dedicated to facilitating education for anyone interested in the art of traditional Irish dance through  support of the local McTeggart Irish Dance School.  MIDOST also supports the attendance of local Irish dancers at Regional, National, and World Championship competitions.  We also promote the awareness of Irish culture and traditional Irish dance through performance demonstrations and sponsoring the Houston New Year's Feis.

The McTeggart School of Irish Dance offers instruction in the art of traditional Irish Step Dancing for all, from beginners through championship levels.  Weekly Instruction is provided by Jennifer Hale (TCRG).  Maureen McTeggart Hall (TCRG/ADCRG) personally leads our classes monthly.

McTeggart School History - The original McTeggart School of Irish Dance was established in 1939 in Cork, Ireland. The first director was Peg McTeggart, the eldest of four sisters, all of them champion dancers. The school soon spread throughout the whole of County Cork due to the efforts of younger sister Maureen McTeggart Hall.  In 1958 Maureen and her family immigrated to the United States, bringing with them the art of Irish Dancing and introducing it to the Western Region of the United States by setting up a schools in Fresno, California and the San Francisco Bay area.  She has since set up more than a dozen schools in Arizona, Utah, Colorado, Texas, New Mexico, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and Louisiana.  Mrs Hall's two daughters have followed in her footsteps and are also certified Irish dance instructors and adjudicators.  The McTeggart School of Irish Dance is one of the most respected schools in the nation, with its dancers consistently qualifying for the World Championships in Ireland.  Maureen McTeggart Hall is a vice-president of the Irish Dancing Commission and often adjudicates at the North American and World Championships.

Houston School History - The McTeggart School of Irish Dance in Houston was started in 1989.  At that time, the Hawks family of

Houston had attended a feis in Boulder one summer and saw the McTeggart Irish Dancers.  They were intrigued by the event and their two daughters became interested in learning Irish dance.  After returning to Houston, they met Cara Bradley, champion level dancer who was interested in finding an Irish dance instructor to help pursue her goal of qualifying for the World Championships.  The Hawks convinced Mrs. Hall to come Houston once a month to teach.  In order to spread out the cost the two families each found other families.  With the Hogans and Pendergasts joining, the first class included just four families and the new school was born!  We met for the next year in homes, church halls, subdivision clubhouses and the YMCA, always looking for recruits to join.  We stayed a relatively small school for a few years and did not really start growing as an established school until we located a studio in The Woodlands. Today more than 70 students of all ages and skill levels attend our school in The Woodlands.