History

Established in January 2004 in Germany to cater to an interest in being part of an organisation that allowed the local teachers to progress and develop at a pace they could manage WIDA has grown to have representation in over 20 countries. Since those early days the organisation has developed a system which allows our affiliates, dancers and parents to all feel part of our family and to enjoy the company and friendship of people from all over the world when they meet at our events.

In our first year we organised three feiseanna - Dusseldorf (now the Ruhr Feis), Bonn Feis and the Stuttgart Feis (now Baden Wurttemberg Feis) and organised workshops to train the teachers towards their first exams held in Bonn in conjunction with the second Bonn Feis. Today WIDA has over 50 feiseanna on its calender and also runs annual exam sessions in Western Europe (Ireland, UK, Mainland Europe in rotation), Eastern Europe (Belarus or Ukraine), Siberia and the US. We also organise on a regular basis as required Dancer Grade Exams which translate into a dance teacher qualification (TCRG/TMRF) when all 11 grades are completed.

Our first ten years have seen WIDA grow to become the organisation we are today. We look forward to the next ten years with anticipation.