Orla Fennelly
Lead Dance Educator
Orla has taught Argentine tango and salsa for fourteen years, working across studios in Edinburgh and Dublin before joining Damirel. She designs the core curriculum and leads the live technique sessions.
Damirel - Glasgow
Partner dancing,
taught with precision.
Damirel is a Glasgow-based online platform where people learn partner dancing through structured live webinars, direct instructor feedback, and a community that takes the craft seriously.
Where this started
Partner dancing is a skill that most people want to learn but rarely find taught well online.
Most video courses show you steps in isolation. They skip the part that actually matters - reading your partner, adjusting weight, communicating without words. Damirel was built to close that gap through live, interactive sessions where instructors can see what you are doing and respond in real time.
The platform serves learners across Glasgow and beyond, drawing on local educational standards while connecting participants with instructors who have spent years on the floor, not just in front of a camera. Sessions run across multiple formats: beginner foundations, technique workshops, and partner-practice labs where two people can join from separate locations and practise together under guided instruction.
1
311
From one pilot session to 311 learners who left a rating
8
4.9
Average rating out of 5 across all published courses
The people behind the sessions
Three specialists with different backgrounds, working together to make partner dancing genuinely learnable online.
Cillian Drury
Curriculum Designer
Cillian spent six years developing adult education programmes for a regional arts council. He structures each Damirel course so that progress builds logically, without leaving gaps that force learners to guess.
Sorcha Ní Bhriain
Community & Engagement Lead
Sorcha manages the learner community, coordinates partner-matching for practice labs, and handles the scheduling of regional instructors who join as guest session leads throughout the year.
What shapes how we teach
These are not principles written for a website. They are the decisions that come up in every session plan and every instructor conversation.
Feedback over footage
Recorded videos have their place, but they cannot correct a misaligned frame or a mistimed step. Every Damirel session includes a live feedback window where instructors address what they actually see.
Pacing that respects the learner
Partner dancing takes time. Damirel courses are sequenced so that each skill is consolidated before the next is introduced - no rushing through material to hit a module count.
Both roles, not just one
Many courses teach only the lead or only the follow. Damirel covers both - because understanding what your partner is doing changes how you move entirely.
Grounded in Glasgow's learning culture
The platform is designed for city residents who want structured learning that fits around work and commute. Sessions run at times that reflect how people in Glasgow actually live, not a generic international schedule.