It is with profound sadness that I share the news of the passing in June 2020 of our long-time instructor, mentor and friend Elheran Francis. Elheran had been the primary instructor at Piedmont Highland Dance for over two decades. A gentle and patient teacher, he was also a tireless promoter of the Highland Arts in Piedmont. Elheran had a vast knowledge of Scottish Highland Dance and Celtic culture as well. Some interesting tidbit was always at hand! In his younger days Elheran competed in Highland Dance, so although he had that perspective and expertise it was always imparted putting the part ..read more

One of the biggest Scottish Games events in the U.S. takes place this upcoming weekend, August 31 and Sept 1st. There is so much to see and do all week at the games, which take place at the Alameda County Fairgrounds. Not to be missed is a pre-game celebration at Main Street Brewery in downtown Pleasanton. Piedmont Highlanders Pipes and Drums will be providing music and Piedmont Highland dancers will join them for some relaxed and festive Highland dancing. Come enjoy the food, drink and fun! New World Dancers have kindly invited Piedmont Highland dancers to perform with them at the Pleasanton ..read more

This past Thursday, the Main Street Brewery hosted a pub night in advance of the 2018 Scottish Highland Games in Pleasanton. Piedmont Highland Dancers together with the Piedmont Highlanders Pipe Band entertained patrons with dancing and music from the Scottish repertoire. This annual event is always enjoyed by everyone and is a great kick-off to the Games weekend. Please visit our gallery to view photos from this event. The post Main Street Brewery hosts Scottish Games Pub Night first appeared on Piedmont Highland Dance ..read more

The Piedmont Highland Dance annual ceilidh on May 6th was well attended and a great success! Many thanks to all who attended and performed and to those who helped set up and clean up. PHD dancers performed many selections from the standard Highland repertoire, such as the Sword dance, Seann Triubhas and the Strathspey and Reel. Dances such as the Lilt and Flora from the Nationals repertoire were also performed. Audience members were asked to join in any of the dances they knew, so the floor was packed for the Fling as well as many other dances. Our thanks to Ethan Freifeld who fiddled a perfec ..read more

The John Muir House in Martinez, California annually hosts a combined Earth Day and John Muir Birthday celebration. It’s certainly an appropriate combination since Scottish-born John Muir was, among so many things, instrumental in adding Yosemite and other parks to the national park system and creating the Sierra Club. Piedmont Highland Dance was well-represented by dancers  Dana Charron, Patty Coe, Barbara Cormack and Kathy Yam Saturday at the John Muir House B/Earth Day 2017 celebration. They were accompanied by the Piedmont Highlanders Pipe Band and danced a Fling, Seann Triubhas, and ..read more

Greetings! Welcome to the new Piedmont Highland Dance website. It’s still a work in progress, but feel free to “dance about” the site and let us know if you have any comments, questions or suggestions. Many thanks to Procyon Creative who did a great job creating the site for us.  They got my wish list up and running very quickly! If you are not already a student at Piedmont Highland Dance, we would love to have you. PHD is all about fun, fitness and friendships! Please visit the class info/sign-up area of the site to learn about us and to register. Enjoy, and keep watching for tweaks ..read more