At 6 p.m. on a Thursday, the hardwood floor of the Ogema Community Center trembles beneath the synchronized strike of two dozen hard shoes. Dancers range from age seven to seventy. Few have Irish ancestry. All of them can execute a treble jig with precision. This is Ogema, Minnesota—a town of roughly 150 souls in the far reaches of Clearwater County—where Irish step dance has become not just a pastime, but the town's beating cultural heart.
What follows is not a vague celebration of Midwestern charm. It is a practical, reported guide to how Irish dance took root in this unlikely place, where to learn it, and how to join in.
How Irish Dance Reached the Pines
Ogema's Irish dance story begins in 1997, when Marianne Colleran, a Mayo-born dance teacher who had settled in Fargo, accepted a friend's invitation to teach a weekend workshop at the Ogema Community Center. Colleran expected a handful of curious onlookers. Instead, twenty-eight children and six adults showed up, several driving more than an hour from Bemidji and Bagley.
By 1999, Colleran had moved to Ogema full-time and founded the Celtic Spirit School of Irish Dance. Her early classes drew families from across northwest Minnesota, many of whom had never seen a hard shoe before. In 2004, one of her students, Derek O'Laughlin, returned to Ogema after competing at the All-Irelands and opened the Ogema Irish Dance Academy, deliberately positioning his school as a more relaxed alternative to Colleran's competitive track.
The two schools have coexisted ever since—sometimes competitively, often collaboratively—and between them have trained an estimated 400 dancers over twenty-five years.
The Schools: Two Approaches, One Town
Celtic Spirit School of Irish Dance
Founded: 1999
Director: Marianne Colleran
Best for: Competitive dancers, children seeking structured advancement
Ages: 5–22
Location: Ogema Community Center, 104 Central Avenue
Celtic Spirit maintains the rigorous syllabus of An Coimisiún Le Rincí Gaelacha. Dancers practice three to five nights weekly, compete at regional oireachtas, and have placed at the North American Nationals eleven times since 2008. Colleran, now in her late sixties, still teaches beginners personally.
Beginner details: Fall enrollment opens August 1. First trial class is free. Soft shoes required by week three; the school maintains a rental bank. Monthly tuition: $85–$120 depending on level.
Ogema Irish Dance Academy
Founded: 2004
Director: Derek O'Laughlin
Best for: Adult beginners, recreational dancers, families learning together
Ages: 16+ (with a children's session Saturdays, ages 7–14)
Location: 211 Main Street, above the Clearwater County Historical Society
O'Laughlin's academy emphasizes performance over competition. His adult beginner class—unusual in Irish dance circles—has become a regional draw, with dancers commuting from Thief River Falls and Red Lake. The academy performs monthly at nursing homes and hosts an annual Ceili in the Pines each September.
Beginner details: Rolling enrollment. No shoes required for the first month—socks suffice. $65/month for adults, $50 for children. Family discounts available.
Community Impact: By the Numbers and the Stories
Irish dance in Ogema is not a hobby practiced in isolation. It is infrastructure.
- The St. Patrick's Day Homecoming (est. 2003) draws 800–1,200 visitors annually to a town that otherwise sees little through-traffic. The 2024 event featured a pub ceilí, a feis judged by Colleran and O'Laughlin, and a performance by six academy dancers at the local church.
- Economic footprint: A 2022 study by the University of Minnesota Extension estimated that dance-related tourism and school operations contribute approximately $180,000 annually to Ogema's economy—significant for a community without a single stoplight.
- Housing effect: Several dance families have relocated to Ogema specifically for access to both schools. In 2019, the town council rezoned a vacant lot on Pine Street to accommodate a planned dance housing cooperative, though construction remains pending.
"I came here for the dance school, and I stayed for the town," said Lena Morris, 34, who moved from Duluth in 2021 with her two daughters. "My youngest has autism and struggles with team sports. Here, she has a team. The rhythm works for her brain."
