About the Instructor
John Grimes was born in Dover, New Hampshire and began Irish dancing at age 11, when his sisters came home practicing their first steps. John was intrigued and began dancing at home before being registered for lessons. After watching a clip of "Riverdance - The Show" on the PBS Television program, "Out of Ireland", dancing became his passion which led to John competing at the World Championship level.
John was a three-time New England Regional Champion, two-time Eastern Canadian Regional Champion, and a four-time top 10 medalist in the North American Irish Dance Championships earning a 4th place and 5th place, in addition to a recall at the All-Ireland Championships held in Killarney, Ireland. John was also a member of several top level ceili teams which won many regional titles and a 3rd place finish at the North American Championships.
However John's biggest dance achievement was being asked to join, "Riverdance - The Show" in 2009 after auditioning at the Gaiety Theatre in Dublin. After multiple tours with Riverdance, including a NBC Television Special: "Riverdance On Ice."
Read New Hampshire Chronicle (WMUR) -TV Special on McDonough-Grimes
He is in the next chapter of his Irish dancing journey: teaching the next generation of dance champions in his home state of New Hampshire. In 2010 John passed his Irish dance teaching certificate, the T.C.R.G., and he is a certified teacher with The Irish Dancing Commission in Dublin, An Coimisiun Le Rince Gaelecha.
"Riverdance was a great place to broaden dance horizons, from the show's choreography to bouncing ideas off other dancers backstage. It's that type of environment McDonough-Grimes Irish Dance embodies, a spirit of learning and experimentation, seeing what's possible for each dancer. McDonough-Grimes's focus on the competitive experience, coupled with an emphasis on performance, will benefit our dancers tremendously."