Meath Rose Ella takes centre-stage in Tralee

Meath Rose, 20-year-old Ella Bannon from Trim, took to the stage on Monday to demonstrate her fantastic Irish Dancing skills to the panel of judges for The Rose of Tralee Festival 2025 opening night.

Ella, who is currently studying General Nursing in DCU, placed seventh in the An Chomhdhail World Championships for Irish Dance in 2021 and has also danced for Pope Francis in Croke Park in 2018.

Ella said: “I genuinely had the best time on stage. I would do it all over again, it was great craic.”

Ella was the first Rose to kick off the proceedings last night as she Irish danced to The Tales of Merrow.

As she came out on stage host Kathryn Thomas acknowledged the fact that Ella was wearing two pairs of shoes, her heels with her dancing shoes underneath!

The bottom of her long green and gold ball gown came off to reveal a shorter dress for the dance before she delicately skipped and danced across the stage during her performance.

"This is the opportunity of a lifetime," she said, when asked about participating in The Rose of Tralee.

Hosted by Dáithí Ó Sé and Kathryn Thomas, the night was filled with laughter, personal stories and the much-loved party pieces, as Roses representing communities across Ireland and the globe shared their backgrounds and talents with the audience.

The second and final night of the event is taking place on Tuesday 19th August with thirty-two contestants competing and hoping to be crowned the winner of the competition.

The final night of the competition can be watched live on RTE at 8pm.