Athlone teen features in RTE series: "It was a privilege"

By Rebekah O'Reilly

Athlone teen China Lynch was honoured when RTE got in touch to ask her to perform in a new series.

The 18-year-old, who is studying for her Leaving Certificate in Athlone Community College, recently featured in the RTE One programme Na Féilte Tine (The Fire Festivals), a four-part series exploring the four indigenous Irish festivals of Samhain, Imbolg, Bealtaine and Lúnasa.

China started dancing with Shannon Dance Academy under teacher Judith Sibley at the age of nine. By 15, she was then accepted into Youth Ballet West, where she experienced a more professional environment and was given the opportunity to perform more frequently.

She featured in the second episode of the series, titled Imblog, which focuses on a festival welcoming Spring. China performed a stunning dance routine which was choreographed by Youth Ballet West's Ríonach Ní Neill.

"Judith reached out to me in late 2023 and asked if I would be interested in being cast in the programme Imbolg," China said speaking about how the opportunity for the series came about. "Of course I agreed and immediately started working on creating the piece with Ríonach."

The programme was produced by ROSG Comhlacht Léiriúcháin, a company based in Spidéal, with much of the filming taking place in Gaeltacht regions.

"It was so much fun and such a wonderful learning experience. It was especially interesting working in the Gaeltacht, the entire crew was Irish speaking which I found really cool," China said. "Everyone was so kind, it was a privilege to work with them and I loved learning about old Irish traditions and culture along the way.

"There were a few challenges. Since we were shooting outdoors in February it was pretty cold, and of course it was very different to dancing in a studio or on a stage."

China hopes to continue building her dance career, with the opportunity giving the 18-year-old a taste of what lies ahead.

"For me, dance will always be a big part of my life and I hope to keep dancing for as long as I can! I'd love to have more opportunities like this in the future."

Episode one and two of Na Féilte Tine (The Fire Festivals) are available for streaming on RTE Player, with the remaining episodes set to air on RTE One later this year.