At Emily McDonald’s School of Highland Dance we strive to be an inclusive and welcoming dance family for all of our dancers. We offer competitive and recreational classes for dancers aged 3 to adult regardless of ability or prior dance experience. Our dancers enjoy participating at competitions and performing at a variety of events throughtout the year.
Contact Miss Emily to book our dancers to perform at your next event!
Emily McDonald
Owner/Director
Full Member Scottish Dance Teacher’s Alliance – Highland and Scottish National Branch
Miss Emily began dancing at the age of 2 and discovered her love of Highland at age 9 following a Robbie Burns celebration with her grandmother. Under the instruction of Lorena Harrison in Merritt and Kamloops BC and then Cheryl Rosborough in Vernon BC, she quickly moved through the competitive levels and competed at a Premier and Championship level throughout British Columbia, Western Canada and the Western United States until her mid-twenties.
Miss Emily started her Highland Dance Teaching career in 2005 in her home town of Merritt BC before joining the faculty of the Penticton School of Dance in the 2007-2008 dance season. In 2011 she began Emily McDonald’s School of Highland Dance and the studio has now grown to include dancers in Penticton and West Kelowna.
Mary Barnett
Instructor
Full Member Scottish Dance Teacher’s Alliance – Highland Branch
Miss Mary started highland dance when she was 5 years old in a New Westminster Parks and Recreation class taught by Kathleen Carlsen, and a year later she was taking lessons with Heather Jolley in Coquitlam. She danced with Mrs. Jolley for 7 years, during which she moved up the competitive dance levels to Premier and had the privilege of taking lessons from Mrs. Adeline Duncan and Jeanette Bonar. When her family then moved to Summerland she continued dancing with Deborah Ward in Kelowna until she retired, then with Rhonda Ast-Wilson before joining Emily’s studio as a dancer in 2018 and as a Instructor in 2019.
Miss Mary has danced competitively at the Championship level and has enjoyed dancing recreationally with local pipe bands and at many community events.