If you have seen Cape Breton style step dancing, you’ll have noticed that all the movement is below the waist and the arms are kept as still as possible. The feet barely leave the floor and the heel is never higher than the toe. This is known as “close to the floor” and it’s the best compliment a Cape Breton step dancer can get. Like the Cape Breton style, Ottawa Valley dancing has roots in the Scottish Highlands and Islands, but is also influenced by the high kicks and moving steps of Irish dancing, the heel-and-toe rhythms of Quebecois dance, and some elements of American tap dancing. We’ll see both styles in fine form tonight. The Cape Breton style opens the night with a stage full of accomplished dancers. Andrea and Troy will keep it lively on fiddle and piano for Melody Cameron and Kelly Warner. Mac and Màiri will do double duty, joining in on piano, harp, and puirt à beul as well as showing off some steps themselves. The Fitzgeralds will take over the second set and share their Ottawa Valley-rooted steps and tunes. A family group consisting of three-time Canadian Grandmaster Fiddle and Step Dance champions, this will be the Fitzgeralds’ first time performing at Celtic Colours, but likely not their last.

And if you’re looking for somewhere to eat before the concert, check out the Hot Roast Beef Dinner in Port Hood, a ten minute drive away.