At first, a group of friends with an interest in things Celtic began meeting on Sunday afternoons to learn Scottish dances just for fun. After a couple of trips to Austin to receive basic instructions from Sarah and Torf from the Austin Scottish Country Dance organization and the purchase of a few video tapes, things started getting a bit more serious.

The Menagerie's first public appearance was as a filler during headliner Donnie Macdonald's intermission at the Scottish Society Burns' Night celebration in January 1997. The dancing lasted all of 11 minutes and included every dance we knew up to that time. Most of us assumed that that performance would be the one and only one. Yet, 9 years and over 100 performances later, Celtic Menagerie is still going strong.

When other offers to dance began to be received, we started to extend our repertoire and learn more complicated dances and dance steps. We began to experiment with some original choreography set to music that was especially appealing to our troupe. Perhaps the highlight of the Menagerie's first year was being accepted to "Bayfest," Corpus Christi's major festival, and opening with an original number, called "Custer Died a Running," which was extremely well received. We have now been invited back to perform every year since then as well as traveled much of Texas to perform in festivals, Highland games, and at private functions.

Performance Photos

Celtic Menagerie is unique among the dancing groups performing in Texas because of our unique blend of the best of traditional Scottish Country and Ceilidh dances with a creative flare for showmanship, incredible musical selections, and showy, colorful costumes. It keeps Celtic Menagerie in demand to "strut our stuff" across the state and we're having more fun than ever!