To an extraordinary journey into the world of talent and passion! 

What's up everyone, today's article is about an amazing, extraordinary, stunning teen Nina Harrington. Nina is a runaway model and an incredible dancer. She told us some amazing facts about Irish dancing and her experience as a dancer. I had an amazing time chatting with her. she's so sweet.  check out the interview to be dazzled...

Q1: For those unfamiliar with you, tell us a little bit about yourself

My name is Nina Harrington, I'm a 19-year-old Fashion, commercial, and runway model, I am currently signed with Ace Models in Colorado along with currently working on several modeling projects, I am also a World Qualifier Open Championship level Irish Dancer, you know like the dance you see from Riverdance, or Lord of the Dance, you're more likely to see me and my dance troupe Celtic Steps perform in pubs, parades, schools, and many other venues during St. Patrick's Day season.  It's an Irish Dancer's personal March Madness.  But that continues on March 17th, people all over the world compete in Irish dance competitions all year long, as well as have performances at any point, sometimes multiple times a week.  I have been dancing since 2012 doing both competitive dance and show performance, even as a team lead for years on end!

Q2: Tell me something people would be surprised to know about you.

I am a singer!  I have been working with my Voice Coach Veronica Mehalic ever since I was a toddler.  I do classical singing such as being a part of several choirs since I was 4 years old, briefly competing at local Colorado voice competitions, being a Cantor since I was 12 at multiple Catholic Churches, and participating in Absolute Music's Holiday recital. 

                                                                                        

Q3: Do you have a celebrity crush?

It sounds corny but honestly not in particular, I mean sure I think a few celebrities are attractive but mainly what I deem to be truly attractive is admirable values, I like it when people who are in situations of power or influence decide to have a large humanitarian impact on those lesser fortunate or privileged than themselves.  I'm a firm believer in charity and change for a cause, and even people in Hollywood have aided in change for the better, what I hope for in the future is that the majority, if not all of celebrities and millionaires would choose to have these "attractive" values.


Q4: What is the one thing you always wanted to do?

It has been sort of a passion of mine to make a positive impression on the next generation, the youth!  I have been doing things throughout my life for the children such as being a dance teacher since I was 14, working at a pottery place with a large demographic of kids, babysitting here and there, or even helping with some VBS groups as a staff member.  I want to be an educator of sorts, but not necessarily in the school teacher kind of way but in the way of being a children's well-being advocate, someone in the childhood development field, helping kiddos with tons of needs.  The kids are our future!  And if we foster their minds, souls, and mental health, they can make a change for the whole world. 

                                                                                                                                      
    

Q5: What do you think has been the hardest thing you have ever done?

There have been countless difficult tasks to accomplish in my life, and lots of obstacles to overcome but most importantly the most difficult thing I have had to complete, which is something that a lot of us have to achieve on a daily, is working with our own mentality.  In life, there will be lots of things thrown at you.  You'll get told "no" to a bunch of things you try for and have to work through rejection picking yourself up again, you will have to handle your own personal psyche when others around you bring you down, and you will deal with bullying, exclusivity, hard tasks, or maybe physical challenges or injuries you have to rebound from.  The hardest thing is reminding yourself "I can do hard things" no matter the troubles. 

                                                                                        

Q6: How would you describe your personality? 

I like to think I'm friendly, I love nice people, and I love working with them!  I (evidently) enjoy the entertainment industry, I love showcasing other people's art as a model and being a creative outlet for inspiration.  I'm one of those people who loves to help out, doing things for the betterment of the world.  My Myers Briggs is an ENFP, and you know I love jokes, gatherings, etc.  I like my solitude from time to time but mainly I'm extroverted, and I like cheering people up when I can.  I'm also honest with people who ask, and down to earth if/when asking for advice, pretty much on anything, if there's a conflict I like being bipartisan and finding out the root cause of any issues for people to come to an agreement on how to resolve things. 


Q7: What would you say were the most important moments of your life so far?

As far as accomplishments go, I have qualified for and attended the World Irish Dance Championships several times throughout my competitive dance career, and let me just tell you this is the Olympics of Irish Dance.  It may be a surprise to some but Irish dance may be one of the absolute most intricate detailed and difficult sports and arts to master.  It's extremely precise and technical, as well as it takes a lot of stamina and endurance, you have to train all year round to prepare for the World Championships.  A couple of times I had made the recall at the World's that takes you to the next round, I was so thankful I was able to achieve this! 

                                                                                            

Q8: How does it feel to be a runway model?

I enjoy the community a lot!  You meet tons of wonderful and talented designers, photographers makeup artists, hairstylists, and models at these events.  I love being a model to showcase a designer's work.  I've always had an appreciation for high fashion, but mostly I admire the sustainable fashion industry.  I love it when creators pledge themselves to being environmentally conscious, it benefits everyone!   So in short, while the glam feeling is great, I prefer the promotion of creative display and the arts!

Q9: What is your favorite movie?

Oh my goodness I'm such a sucker for '80s Fantasy films, and one film that has made a lasting impression on me, that I will never get tired of seeing is Bob Reiner's The Princess Bride 1987.  I've never been that into romance movies but this one is just so sweet and all of the characters are totally lovable.  The cinematography, the writing, the overall aesthetic, and the plot line of the film have been a favorite of mine and my family's for a very long time. 
Honorable mentions are Howl's Moving Castle, High Society, Hook, A Silent Voice, Pride and Prejudice, Sense and Sensibility, The Corpse Bride, Nanny McPhee, The Phantom of the Opera, Maleficent, The Devil Wears Prada, The Secret World of Arrietty, Beetlejuice, Meet me in St. Louis, Pretty Woman, and the Princess Diaries saga.

                                                                            

Q10: Would you like to tell us a little about your future plans?

I would love to continue modeling as long as I can, working with photographers and designers as well and I would enjoy continuing to be a part of the Irish dance community by pursuing my love for performance in shows.  I am also currently studying for my Irish dance teacher's certification called a TCRG, which to achieve you have to complete a series of examinations and I have completed 10 of those. 

Q11: What's the favorite part of being a model and a dancer?

I like putting a smile on people's faces!  I would like little girls to be inspired to pursue their passions when they look at me as well as other people like me in this entertainment and arts field.  Something that gets called to mind is when I was doing one of many shows during St Patrick's Day for local retirement homes, I had a sweet older lady express her gratitude to me and my dance troupe, she explained that she had been very depressed as of late but we had cheered her up.  In exchange for us dancing for her, she handed out little handmade prayer and charm bags to me and the team I was leading, interactions such as these brightened up my day.  I like it when little kids come up to me during performances or photo shoots to say hi! Sometimes I am met with curious questions from them and oftentimes I'm met with admiration, they have a fascinated gaze, and I want them to feel excited when they see us!  So whether it be young, elderly, or something in between, the thing that I like most about both of these things that I am a part of is making people happy.

                                                                        

Q12: You’re an Irish dancer, tell us more about it and what’s your most memorable performance?

So to be an Irish dancer one would take lessons to learn the unique technical aspects of how we move within our own cultural dance, and you get to learn in time the seven main competition dances that are either in Ghillies, or in Hard Shoes that resemble tap shoes, and once you have learned these dances, you compete at something that is known a Feis (pronounced Fe-sh), which is what an Irish dancing competition is titled, at a Feis, you can move up in level by being the top placer out of your entire competition.  There are six levels, the first two being Beginner 1 and Beginner 2, then followed by Novice, and Prizewinner, and then lastly the champion levels known as Preliminary Championship and the top level, Open Championship.  When you're out and about and you run into an Irish dancer in their full competition attire, you may think we look funny.  We wear curly wigs that can be either in the style of an updo or in a full-length to bob-length cut, as well as we have dresses that we wear that traditionally are long sleeves with a panel skirt that is above mid-thigh length, these often are blinged out in Swarovski crystals, and intricate embroidery that often resemble traditional Celtic knotting or patterns, these dresses are called solo dresses and they are unique to each dancer, you earn these solo costumes by reaching the Novice level at a Feis, we wear full stage makeup if we are over the age of 10, as well as we have super dark tanner only on our legs to show off muscle definition!  You're probably envisioning something that looks sort of out of the box and strange to some but this is an Irish dancer's norm. 
Back in 2019, I performed with the String Cheese Incident band at Red Rocks Amphitheater in front of thousands and thousands of people!  This was probably my most memorable performance of all time and I am so grateful that I was granted an opportunity to be a part of that.

Q13: What is the best advice you have gotten so far in your career?

A teacher who was very dear to me would always tell us that it was very important to listen to our bodies.  That meant not overly exerting yourself past the point of where your body can take you, this also meant nourishing your mind making sure you are taking in enough nutrients.  Take time for yourself to learn about your health and wellness, self-care is incredibly important and I now am going to advocate for it because of what he had told me for all of those years. Nurture your body and mind it's the only one you've got!

                                                                                

Q14: The one thing I cannot live without is:

Good food!  I'm such a sucker for eating well-prepared meals and I believe that not only is food so important but it is such a big part of lots of people's stories and especially people's cultures.  Food has a history, I love expanding my own palette and trying tons of new things when possible, don't worry about what people say about what you choose to eat, and don't worry about people judging you for eating food that is in their opinion "outside of the box", what you eat is entirely up to you and it is also vital that you eat healthy and often! 


Q15:  Thanks for answering our question and being here with us on Tweekly Chic!  It was a fun experience to know you.  Tell us about your experience being featured on Tweekly Chic and what's your message for teens who really admire or like you.

Thank you so much for having me on here, I love reaching out to a broader audience and sharing my passions and what I know!  I encourage everybody should follow their passions and use the tools that they are given and have worked hard for to achieve their goals and ideals even if it gets to be difficult, along with using these gifts for the overall good of society.  If anyone is interested in working with me please don't hesitate to find me and ask, I am open to trying lots of things and working to meet as many people as I can.