Big Apple Rose of Tralee Winners Announced

2011 BIG APPLE ROSE, ESCORT, JUNIOR ROSES, & ROSEBUDS SELECTED ON MARCH 27

BIG APPLE ROSE CAITLIN McNEILL & ESCORT WILLIAM LEE, III TO COMPETE AT THE ROSE OF TRALEE REGIONAL SELECTION IN PORTLAOISE, IRELAND IN JUNE 2011

USG Performing Arts Presenters, LLC hosted the 2011 Big Apple Rose of Tralee Festival Weekend at the legendary Hudson Theatre in Times Square from March 25-27. Selections of a Big Apple Rose, Escort, Junior Roses, and Rosebuds were announced on the evening of March 27. Caitlin McNeill, of Brooklyn, New York, was crowned the Big Apple Rose of Tralee and William Lee, III, of Mineola, New York, the Escort. Two Junior Roses were chosen: Brontë Steen, of New Windsor, NY, and Molly Bancroft, of Washingtonville, NY; and two Rosebuds were selected: Meghan Treanor, of New City, NY, and Bridie Bommentre, of Valley Forge, PA. The festival was emceed by Conor McGuirk. The judging panel was comprised of Ashling Colton, Jacqueline Honulik, and Lisa Goldenberg. Miss McNeill and Mr. Lee will go on to represent New York at the Rose of Tralee Regional Selection in Portlaoise, Ireland from June 2-7, 2011. The winning Rose from New York will go on to compete at the International Rose of Tralee Festival in Tralee, Ireland in August, 2011.



Saturday evening’s festivities featured the interview and talent portions of the competition and included music by Joyce and Ruth O’Leary of Sephira and a performance of “Capone” by The Lynn Academy Troupe Dancers, featuring choreography by Maureen Collins.



The theme of Sunday’s Rose Selection Gala was “The First of Firsts,” honoring the various “Firsts” in Irish culture in the U.S. This year’s honorees represented the fields of Irish dance and theatre. Honoree George C. Heslin, Founder and Artistic Director of The Origin Theatre Company and producer of the first festival of Irish theatre in New York, First Irish, was on hand to accept his award; as was Loretta Thiele, who accepted on behalf of her husband, lifetime honoree Mr. Paul F. Thiele, a longtime supporter of Irish arts and culture. Ms. Thiele also presented a series of Irish dance scholarships to the winners of the 2011 Big Apple Feis “Dance-Off”, which along with a Parade of Champions, was part of the evening’s repertoire. The evening also featured the music of Sephira, along with a performance of “A Journey through Time” by The Lynn Academy Troupe Dancers, choreographed by Maureen Collins.



Upon receiving her title, Miss O’Neill said, "I am extremely proud and honored to represent my Irish heritage, as well as New York City, as the Big Apple Rose of Tralee. This title will give me the opportunity to meet many great people, form long-lasting memories, and embark on a journey that will provide me with an experience of a lifetime. As the Big Apple Rose of Tralee, I plan to reach out and leave a positive impact on the lives of others, not only throughout this year, but for many years to come. I am confident I will successfully fulfill my duties as the Big Apple Rose of Tralee and do my very best to represent New York City in Ireland!"



For further information, please visit our website at www.bigappleroseoftralee.com or email us at bigappleroseoftralee@yahoo.com.





About The Rose of Tralee Festival

The Rose of Tralee programs encourage young women (Roses, Junior Roses, and Rosebuds) and young men (Escorts) to take pride in their Irish heritage and to get involved in service to their local Irish communities. Participants in all programs are required to have some Irish ancestry. Judging is based on communication skills, poise, personality, talent, well-roundedness in life, an essay, and Irish pride. All titleholders receive a tiara and prize package and will go on to represent the New York Irish community at local area events.



2011 Big Apple Rose of Tralee, Caitlin McNeill

Caitlin McNeill, 21, is a Brooklyn, New York native. She is currently a senior at St. Joseph's College, where she is about to earn a Bachelor’s Degree with a double major in Child Study and Speech-Language Pathology. Caitlin plans to attend graduate school in the fall of 2011 to pursue a Master's Degree in Speech-Language Pathology. She has been deeply rooted in New York City’s Irish community from a very young age. Caitlin has been studying Irish Step Dancing since the age of 10, and has been sharing her love of Irish dance and music by performing all over the U.S. She has danced at Town Hall, The Duke Theater, on The Today Show, Fox and Friends, and at the world-renowned Carnegie Hall. Caitlin has also been featured in Dance Spirit Magazine. Over the past five years, she has been dedicated to helping educate young people in New York City by offering classes in schools, libraries, and daycare centers where she teaches not only Irish Step Dancing but its history. Caitlin has ties to Ireland through her great-grandparents who hail from Counties Kerry and Cork.



2011 Big Apple Escort, William Lee, III

William Lee III, 28, is from Mineola, New York. He has a Bachelor’s Degree in Finance from Northeastern University in Boston, MA with a Minor in Mathematics. Bill is a member of the Irish Business Organization, the Ancient Order of the Hibernians (AOH) Division 1 NY County, Irish Network of NYC, the Irish American Bar Association of New York, and the Northeastern University Alumni NYC chapter. He is also a Marching Units Judge for the New York City St. Patrick’s Day Parade. Bill is a licensed Personal Banker for JPMorgan Chase Bank in New York, NY, where he works to acquire and deepen relationships for the bank. He enjoys networking, swimming and basketball.



2011 Big Apple Junior Rose, Brontë Steen

Brontë is 14 years old and lives in New Windsor, New York. She is a member of an active-duty Marine Corps family that has been stationed in New York for just over a year. Brontë is homeschooled along with her younger sister Kiersten, and she skipped 8th grade this year in order to begin high school. She has been Irish dancing for over nine years now; and she also enjoys archery, soap casting, reading, and acting in plays. Brontë is an avid writer and on April 1st, she began The Script Frenzy Young Writers Program, where she’ll work towards completing an original screenplay in just thirty days and submit it - not for any award - but for the love of writing. She hopes this might lead to some published work someday!



2011 Big Apple Junior Rose, Molly Bancroft

Molly is 13 years old and lives in Washingtonville, New York. She is in the eighth grade and attends Washingtonville Middle School. She is an active member of both the Girl Scouts; now working towards a Silver Award; and her local church, where she is an altar server. She enjoys going to baseball games and watching classic TV sitcoms, cartoons and black and white movies. She has been Irish dancing since the age of five and has danced at not only US Nationals, but at the All-Irelands, British Nationals, and Scottish Nationals. For the past two years, she has qualified and competed at the World Championships at the Open Championship level.



2011 Big Apple Rosebud, Bridie Bommentre

Bridie Bommentre is 9 years old and is in the fourth grade. She is an Open Championship-level step dancer with the Broesler School of Irish Dance. She has been dancing for six years, and also loves to sing and play the tin whistle. Her Irish heritage is from County Mayo and County Cavan.



2011 Big Apple Rosebud, Meghan Treanor

Meghan Treanor, age 11, lives in New City, New York, and is in the fifth grade at Link Elementary School. Her dad, Brian, hails from Tydavnet, Co. Monaghan. Her maternal grandparents, Eamon and Eva (Sharkey) McGarry, hail from Tibohine, Co. Roscommon. Meghan enjoys sports, and is a member of the Clarkstown Softball League, the Clarkstown Travel Soccer League, and the Rockland GAA. She especially enjoys camogie, and was a member of the Rockland GAA U-10 team that won the 2010 CYC Championships for football and camogie. She enjoys visiting Ireland and spending time with her family. When asked about her experience with the Big Apple Rose of Tralee, Meghan said she "enjoyed meeting so many new people", but her favorite part was "making new friends with all of the awesome girls"!



2011 Big Apple Rose of Tralee Festival Emcee, Conor McGuirk

Conor McGuirk, whose family hails from Counties Galway and Monaghan, is a resident of Queens, New York, and a native of the Irish music scene. Since the age of three, Conor has enjoyed and cherished music, beginning with the piano and later branching out to the guitar, drums, and piano accordion. His hard work has earned him an incredible 17 medals at the Fleadh Cheoil na hEíreann, the World Championships of Irish Music. Three of those medals were First-Place World Championship titles, and Conor is the only American to hold that honor. In 2006, Conor was nominated by Irish America Magazine as one of their "Top 100 Irish Americans" for his accomplishments and dedication to Irish culture and history. In 2008, he was nominated by The Irish Echo as one of “The Top 40 Irish Americans Under 40" in honor of his dedication and achievements in Irish music, culture and history. Conor is also involved in the Irish dance scene, playing not only at local feiseanna but also at many regional and national-level competitions. Conor is currently an Emergency Medical Technician with the New York City Fire Department (FDNY). He plans to continue to pursue a career with the FDNY, along with keeping his heritage alive through his music.





About the 2011 Big Apple Rose of Tralee Judges



Ashling Colton

Ashling Colton represented Ireland as the 2009 New York Rose of Tralee. A graduate of Fordham University, she was the co-host of Ceol na nGael, "The Music of the Irish" on WFUV-FM. She recently joined fellow participants of the Rose of Tralee Festival in climbing Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest summit and the group raised $40,000 for charity. Ashling currently resides in Sunnyside, Queens.



Jacqueline Honulik

Originally from Fairfield, Connecticut, Jacqueline Honulik, a former classically-trained ballerina and junior golf champion, won the title of Miss Connecticut USA in 2008, and that of Miss Connecticut US International in 2011. She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science and History from the University of Scranton. A sought-after face within the baseball community, Jacqueline has since worked for the New York Mets and is currently employed by the World Champion New York Yankees. At the present time, she is studying broadcast journalism at New York University, melding school and work with a successful modeling career, having modeled for both the prestigious spring and fall New York Fashion Weeks, various magazines, and playing a model on the CBS-TV show "Blue Bloods.” In her spare time, Jacqueline enjoys volunteering for the March of Dimes and Connecticut's “Swim Across the Sound”, as well as watching her favorite team, the New York Mets.



Lisa Goldenberg

Lisa is a non-profit professional and a writer with a diverse background in the fields of international affairs and arts administration. She received her M.Phil. in International Peace Studies from Trinity College Dublin. Her book on the Irish Language and the Conflict in Northern Ireland was published in Dublin in 2002. She is an Irish and Scottish Highland dancer and a member of the New York Celtic Dancers, a professional Scottish dance company.