Why do Irish step dancers hold their arms to their sides when performing?
Nobody knows for sure. There are dozens of stories as to why they keep their arms and back rigid. I’ll just give you a few: Irish dancers were to perform for Queen Elizabeth I but refused to raise their arms to her. They didn’t want the English to know they were dancing so when indoors they kept their arms rigid and their legs couldn’t be seen. The Catholic church didn’t want boys and girls holding hands. The one that is most popular and that I would tend to believe is that the Church being overly puritanical decided to impose strict regiment into the dance to try and eliminate the fun aspect from it.
