In this episode of DanceCast, Silva interviews dance artist Devin Hill. Devin describes their experience growing up with a rare eye condition and how it affected their motor skills. Their mother put them in dance to help with balance and coordination. Devin shares their experience pursuing dance in college and learning to be an advocate for themself as a dancer with a disability by communicating their needs. They share how change often starts with just having people with disabilities be in the room. Devin reflects on their undergraduate experience and how institutions need to start taking responsibility for making their dance programs accessible and available to students with disabilities. As Devin has become a teacher and taken on leadership roles, they have been empowered by breaking down ableism in dance and giving others an opportunity to directly express what they need.

This episode is part of a series interviewing institutions with inclusive dance programs and individuals who identify as disabled and have experienced formal dance education as either students or teachers. This series is part of Silva’s ongoing work as the director of Art Spark Texas’ dance program. This year, she is continuing the multi-year community-engaged research project, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, that explores disability-centered accessibility in dance education and how we can create barrier-free dance education for students with disabilities in the US.

LISTEN HERE!

Photo courtesy Devin Hill

Devin Hill is a graduate from the University of Central Oklahoma with a BFA in Dance Performance. Their love of dance began at the age of three and has lasted more than 20 years. Devin set sights on dance as a career during their time at Collin College in Plano, TX.  While at Collin College, they were exposed to jazz, ballet, modern, hip hop, tap, African, improvisation, and Latin ballroom. Devin has had the opportunity of working with Christopher K. Morgan, William “Bill” Evans, Clarence Brooks, Brandon Fink, Hannah Baumgarden, Jeremy Duvall, Gregg Russell, Lachlan McCarthy, Kristin McQuaid, and Cat Cogliandro. They were a member of the 2015-2016 award-winning Kaleidoscope Dance Company. Since graduating from UCO, they have continued to further their knowledge of dance by performing, choreographing, teaching, and participating in intensives and workshops across the US. In 2018, Devin had the honor of performing with Liz Lerman’s Dance Exchange at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. They were also a cast member on the hit Facebook Watch series “Dance with Nia.” Devin currently resides in Washington D.C. and New York City, where they perform and educate as a member of catastrophe! Dance Company, ReVision Dance Company, and Kinetic Light. Devin also serves as a board member for Feel The Beat and is an educational specialist for Bodywise Dance. Devin strives to use their artistry to create a more safe, equitable, and accessible dance industry for everyone.

The post Access is An Ongoing Process appeared first on Stance on Dance.

In this episode of DanceCast, Silva interviews Jasmiina Sipilä, who works as a leading teacher in the dance department of Vocational College Live, where they offer the only professional dance degree in Finland for dancers with special needs. The professional degree in dance is aimed for students with special needs, which means these dance students need individual support, modifications, and extra guidance in their studies and working life. The definition of special needs is used in this interview as an umbrella term to mean students who are neurodivergent, have developmental disabilities, have mental health challenges, or have different bodies and motor functions.

Jasmiina describes how, in the degree, the students focus on contemporary dance, cooperation, somatic skills, performing, choreographing, and inclusive dance theory, as well as curriculum in dance practice and theory. The students’ degree has many applications after graduation, from dancing professionally to working in the community with different populations.

This episode is part of a series interviewing institutions with inclusive dance programs and individuals who identify as disabled and have experienced formal dance education as either students or teachers. This series is part of Silva’s ongoing work as the director of Art Spark Texas’ dance program. This year, she is continuing the multi-year community-engaged research project, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, that explores disability-centered accessibility in dance education and how we can create barrier-free dance education for students with disabilities in the US.

LISTEN HERE!

Photo courtesy Jasmiina Sipilä

Jasmiina Sipilä is a dancer (BA Hons in Contemporary Dance, Trinity Laban, City University of London), a dance teacher (Master of Dance, University of the Arts, Helsinki), and a special education teacher (professional teacher training college, Haaga-Helia, Helsinki). She has worked widely for 18 years as a dancer, choreographer and teacher in Finland and Europe. Jasmiina loves exploring inclusive dance practice and its possibilities in improvisation and somatic work.

The post The Value of Studying Dance appeared first on Stance on Dance.

In this episode of DanceCast, Silva interviews Rhona Coughlan, the artistic director of Inclusive Dance Cork in Cork, Ireland, along with project coordinator Dr. Kaylie Streit. Inclusive Dance Cork is a professional dance training program for people with and without disabilities who want to engage with contemporary inclusive dance. This program is based at Dance Cork Firkin Crane and is the only accredited program of its kind in the Republic of Ireland.

Rhona shares her empowering entrance into dance via co-founding Ireland’s first inclusive dance company, and Kaylie shares how her background as a music teacher led her to think about inclusive practices in the arts. Rhona describes the breadth of Inclusive Dance Cork’s programming and how it is made possible through strong community partnerships, how the program design provides person-centered access, and how her ultimate goal is to never have a person go into a dance class and feel excluded ever again.

This episode is part of a series interviewing institutions with inclusive dance programs and individuals who identify as disabled and have experienced formal dance education as either students or teachers. This series is part of Silva’s ongoing work as the director of Art Spark Texas’ dance program. This year, she is continuing the multi-year community-engaged research project, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, that explores disability-centered accessibility in dance education and how we can create barrier-free dance education for students with disabilities in the US.

LISTEN HERE!

Photo courtesy Inclusive Dance Cork

Inclusive Dance Cork is currently spearheaded by artistic director Rhona Coughlan, a dancer, advocate, and a full-time wheelchair user herself. She co-founded the first inclusive dance company in Ireland, Wheels in Motion, in 1994, and co-founded the second, Croí Glan, in 2006.

Dr. Kaylie Streit is an educator, musician, and arts and culture researcher. Since recording this podcast, Kaylie has shared news she is leaving her role as project coordinator of Inclusive Dance Cork and has accepted the position of lead strings teacher at Cork City Music College.

To learn more about Inclusive Dance Cork, visit dancecorkfirkincrane.ie/inclusive-dance-cork-idc.

The post Inclusive Dance Education in Ireland appeared first on Stance on Dance.

In this episode of DanceCast, Silva Laukkanen is actually the interviewee. She is interviewed by co-worker April Sullivan and Art Spark Texas’ executive director Celia Hughes. This episode is part of a series interviewing institutions with inclusive dance programs and individuals who identify as disabled and have experienced formal dance education as either students or teachers. This series is part of Silva’s ongoing work as the director of Art Spark Texas’ dance program and their multi-year community-engaged research project, funded in part by the National Endowment for the Arts, that explores disability-centered accessibility in dance education and how we can create barrier-free dance education for students with disabilities in the US.

Silva shares her dance history and how she was introduced to inclusive dance spaces as a young person, how the disability dance field is behind in terms of education, and how Art Spark Texas’ research project is assessing what existing opportunities are out there and what more needs to be done.

LISTEN HERE!

Silva Laukkanen is a passionate advocate for inclusive dance, aiming to broaden perceptions of who can dance and where dance happens.

These questions led her to create DanceCast in 2016, a podcast spotlighting non-traditional dance artists, and to co-author Breadth of Bodies, Discussing Disability in Dance in 2022, a book featuring interviews with dance artists with disabilities globally.

As Director of Integrated Dance at Art Spark Texas, Silva Laukkanen leads bi-annual intensives, performance projects, and monthly classes. In 2020, she co-founded Tractus Art with a colleague from South Africa. Together, they produce videos highlighting artists with disabilities and are working on a children’s book about a dance company founder who is Deaf, set for publication later this year. Silva also collaborates with other inclusive dance companies, providing support in arts administration.

Silva holds a BFA from North Karelia College and a postgraduate degree from Trinity Laban Conservatoire. A certified DanceAbility teacher since 2003, she has trained with choreographers and companies like Adam Benjamin, AXIS Dance Company, and Dancing Wheels. Currently, she is pursuing an MA in Dance: Participation, Community, Activism at the London Contemporary Dance School and serves as the board president of Kaaos Company, Finland’s leading inclusive dance company.

To learn more, www.artsparkdance.org.

The post Seeking Barrier-Free Dance Education appeared first on Stance on Dance.

한글로 인터뷰를 읽으시길 원하신다면 스크롤을 내려주세요.

Near the end of 2021, I was contacted by the Korea International Accessible Dance Festival (KIADA), who found Stance on Dance online and were interested in the book I co-authored with Silva Laukkanen, Breadth of Bodies: Discussing Disability in Dance. They were coming to the United States and were interested in connecting with me and Silva. After a few talks and an interview with them for Stance on Dance, they expressed interest in translating our book into Korean to share at the festival. Imagine our surprise and delight!

This past November 2022, I was happy to go to Seoul to see the festival in person. I knew right away I wanted to interview some of the choreographers being presented. While Silva’s and my book Breadth of Bodies covers 35 professional dancers with disabilities from 15 different countries, the beauty of this digital age meant we conducted the interviews remotely. As an unfortunate result, we haven’t gotten to actually see most of our interviewees dance. I was excited to take the opportunity to see and understand the work of various dance artists with disabilities at KIADA.

One of the dancers in Possible Dance 2022, Photo courtesy Hyejeon Hong

At the festival, I met Soo Jung Bae, a volunteer who I found friendly and inquisitive. She had recently authored a book in Korean, Learning How to Be Together, about children who have intellectual disabilities. I knew she was the person to help me interview some of the KIADA choreographers, not only because of her ease in English and Korean, but also because of her interest in writing and interviewing. As soon as I returned to the states, Soo Jung and I began contacting some of the choreographers I found especially intriguing at KIADA.

With Soo Jung’s help, I have interviewed Sungkuk Kang (the choreographer of OnMom Company in South Korea), Erin Ball, Vanessa Furlong, and April Hubbard (the dynamic trio behind LEGacy Circus in Canada), Luda Lee (the choreographer of Black Toe Dance in South Korea), Laura Morales Dávila and Helliot Baeza González (a choreographer and dancer with Danza Mobile in Spain), and Hyejeon Hong (the choreographer of Hong Dance Company X Dancing Eunpyeong in South Korea).

Overall, I enjoyed the breadth and variety of disability represented at the festival. In the United States, my impression is that most of the biggest names in the disability dance artistry field have physical disabilities and use crutches or manual wheelchairs. But that demographic is but a segment of the wider world of disability. On display at KIADA were not only dancers with physical disabilities who use wheelchairs or crutches, but also dancers who are blind or low vision, dancers with dwarfism, and dancers with intellectual disabilities (the program notes denoted which dancers had disabilities and the nature of their disabilities).

Sungkuk Kang’s powerful piece How to Fold featured himself and two other dancers wrestling with a large piece of paper that covered the stage. I learned from interviewing Sungkuk that as a person with cerebral palsy, he was severely bullied as a child, and this experience was the impetus for his piece. He used the paper as a symbol to show that each person has value. Of course this is the case, but so often in the dance world, a narrow vein of bodies and experiences (think young, thin, and able-bodied) are valued. Sungkuk interrogated this bias in the dance world through his very presence, and the sight of him surrounded by endless crumpled paper was indelible.

LEGacy Circus’ The World at Our Feet took the audience on performer Erin Ball’s journey of becoming disabled and embracing disability. Most exciting was watching Erin’s “ah-ha” moment discovering disability as a creative force through the clever use of prosthetics. At the end when the performers’ various prosthetics explode confetti over the audience, I couldn’t help but cheer. Disability is an engine for exciting artistic possibilities not necessarily available to those of us who are able bodied. How thrilling to watch that frontier unfold.

Luda Lee’s piece Trialogue featured three disabled dancers and their personal experiences navigating a world not built for them. The first dancer was a young woman with an intellectual disability, Jiyoon Baek, who has intensively studied ballet. She performed a pas de deux with a professional male ballet dancer. I found their duet so eloquent I cried the whole way through. Because I grew up in the ballet world and for a long time longed to join its ranks, I found this instance of a budding ballerina’s dreams being fulfilled, no matter how unlikely in a more traditional ballet setting, especially poignant. It was an expression of the ballet world I want to dance in.

Laura Morales Dávila and Helliot Baeza González performed Soy Todo El Mundo, a dance theater piece about one’s inner monster. Disability has historically been associated with monstrosity, and yet in Soy Todo El Mundo, one’s inner monster was equated with freedom, as if finding one’s inner monster could liberate a person to more genuine and honest expression. Given that my favorite genre to perform is dance-theater, I found the use of voice in this piece refreshing. When Laura and Helliot started talking and singing, it dawned on me that all the other pieces in the festival had used music over a sound system. Actually hearing Laura and Helliot’s voices in tandem with seeing their movements showed me their agency as people searching for freedom of expression.

From my perspective of the professional disability dance field in the US, people with intellectual disabilities are among the last to gain visibility and advocacy. Yet at KIADA, almost every evening of performances prominently featured dancers with intellectual disabilities. Among my favorites was Hong Dance Company X Dancing Eunpyeong in Possible Dance 2022, which featured a complete cast of dancers with intellectual disabilities onstage by themselves (meaning no dancers without intellectual disabilities were there to “guide” them). I found their improvisation to be dynamic and absolutely unpredictable, a true definition of improvisation. And because I doubt these dancers have been indoctrinated by ideas of “good” and “bad” dance the way I certainly have in my training, their movement choices betrayed no such silly hierarchy.

What I love about the intersection of disability in dance is how it scrambles our expectations when we watch a performance. And yet, if we start to see the same kinds of disability represented over and over again, the possibility for that artistic wonder becomes diminished. Disability is a huge demographic that encompasses many ways of interfacing with the world. I want to see bodies onstage that not only challenge who gets to be a dancer, but also challenge what I’ve been preconditioned by the dance world to accept as “good” dance. For me, KIADA did just that.

Sungkuk Kang in Oh! baby, Photo courtesy Sungkuk Kang

~~

또 다른 세상의 한켠에서 장애 무용 예술을 만나다

Emmaly Wiederholt 작성

배수정 번역

2021년이 끝나갈 무렵, 저는 대한민국장애인국제무용제 (KIADA, 이하 키아다)로부터 연락을 받았습니다. 키아다는 온라인을 통해 스탠스온댄스(Stance on Dance)를 발견하고, 저와 실바 라우카넨(Silva Laukkanen)이 공동 집필한 책, 『몸의 범위: 무용에서 장애를 논하다(Breadth of Bodies: Discussing Disability in Dance)』에 관심을 보였습니다. 키아다는 미국에 방문할 예정이었고, 저와 Silva를 만나기를 원했습니다. 몇 번 대화를 나누고, 스탠스온댄스와 인터뷰를 하고 나서, 저희의 책을 한국어로 옮기고 싶다는 의사를 표현했습니다. 너무 기쁘고 반가웠습니다!

지난 2022년 11월, 저는 직접 서울에 가서 무용제를 관람했습니다. 공연을 하는 무용수분들을 인터뷰하고 싶다는 것을 바로 느꼈습니다. 실바와 저의 책 『몸의 범위』는 15개 국가 출신의 서른 다섯 명의 전문 장애인 무용수들의 이야기를 다룹니다.디지털 시대 덕분에 먼 거리에서도 인터뷰를 진행할 수 있었습니다. 하지만 안타깝게도 인터뷰이들의 공연을 직접 보지는 못했습니다. 때문에 키아다에서 장애를 갖고 있는 무용 예술가들의 작품을 보고, 공연을 감상할 수 있어 기뻤습니다.

무용제에서 저는 다정하고 탐구적인 자원봉사가 배수정씨를 만났습니다. 배수정씨는 최근에 발달장애 아동들의 이야기를 다룬 책 『함께하는 법을 배우다』를 집필했습니다. 저는 수정씨에게 키아다 안무가들과의 인터뷰를 도와달라고 해야겠다는 생각이 들었습니다. 그녀가 영어와 한국어를 편하게 했던 것 뿐만 아니라, 글을 쓰고 인터뷰를 하는 것에 관심을 갖고 있었기 때문입니다. 미국으로 돌아오자마자 저와 수정씨는 제가 특별히 관심 있게 보았던 안무가들에게 연락을 했습니다.

수정씨의 도움으로 강성국 (한국 온몸컴퍼니의 안무가) 선생님, 에린 볼(Erin Ball)과 바네사 펄롱(Vanessa Furlong) 그리고 에이프릴 허바드(April Hubbard) (캐나다 레거시 서커스의 트리오), 이루다(한국의 블랙토댄스컴퍼니 안무가) 선생님, 로라 모랄레스 다빌라(Laura Morales Dávila)와 헬리오트 바에자 곤잘레스(Helliot Baeza González) (스페인의 단자모바일의 안무가 및 무용가), 그리고 홍혜전 (한국의 홍댄스컴퍼니X춤추는 은평 재활원의 안무가) 선생님을 인터뷰했습니다.

전반적으로 무용제에서 보여진 장애의 종류와 범위가 인상 깊었습니다. 미국의 경우, 장애 무용 예술 분야에서 유명하게 활동하는 예술가들은 주로 신체 장애를 가지고 있어 수동 휠체어나 목발을 사용한다는 인상을 받았습니다. 하지만 목발이나 휠체어를 이용하고, 신체 장애가 있는 인구는 전체 장애 인구의 일부입니다. 키아다 공연에는 휠체어와 목발을 이용하는 신체 장애를 가진 무용가들 뿐만 아니라 시각 장애를 갖고 있거나, 시력이 좋지 않거나, 왜소증을 갖고 있거나, 지적 장애 (프로그램에서는 어떤 무용가가 어떤 장애를 갖고 있고 그 장애가 무엇인지에 대해 설명이 되어있었습니다)를 가진 무용가들이 있었습니다.

강성국 무용가가 만든 파워풀한 작품 ‘접는 법(How to Fold)’에서는 강성국 무용가와 다른 두 명의 무용수가 무대를 덮는 큰 종이 더미를 옮기는 장면이 나옵니다. 강성국 무용가와의 인터뷰를 통해 뇌성 마비를 갖고 있는 그가 어려서 심각한 학교 폭력을 겪었고, 당시의 피해 경험이 이 작품의 탄생 계기가 되었다는 것을 알게 되었습니다. 그는 모든 사람이 가치있다는 것을 표현하기 위한 상징으로 종이를 사용합니다. 모든 사람이 가치가 있다는 것은 어쩌면 당연한 말이지만, 무용계에서는 아주 좁은 범위의 몸과 경험(젊은 생각을 가지고, 마르고, 비장애인)만이 가치 있게 여겨집니다. 강성국 무용가는 그의 존재를 통해 무용계의 이러한 편견에 질문을 던집니다. 그리고 무수히 많이 뭉쳐진 종이 더미에 둘러 싸인 그의 모습은 잊혀질 수 없는 인상을 남깁니다.

레거시 서커스의 <우리 발 아래의 세상(The World at Our Feet)>은 관객들을 이끌고 에린 볼이 장애를 갖게 되고, 장애를 수용하는 여정을 떠납니다. 가장 인상 깊은 순간은 에린이 의족을 창의적으로 사용하며 장애가 가진 독창적인 힘을 발견하는, 에린의 “아-하”순간이었습니다. 마지막에 공연가들의 다양한 의족들이 관객을 향해 색종이 조각들을 뿌린 순간에는 환호하지 않을 수 없었습니다. 장애는 비장애인들에게는 가능하지 않은 흥미로운 예술적 가능성의 자원으로 기능합니다. 개척되지 않은 최전선의 세계가 펼쳐지는 것을 보는 건 감격스러운 일이 아닐 수 없습니다.

이루다 안무가의 작품 <세 사람의 이야기(Trialogue)>는 세 명의 장애인 무용가들과 그들의 개인적인 경험을 다루며, 그들을 위해 만들어진 세계가 아닌 세계를 탐구합니다. 첫 번째 무용수는 지적 장애를 가진 젊은 여성인 백지윤 무용수였습니다. 그녀는 발레를 깊이 있게 공부했습니다. 백지윤 무용수는 전문 남성 발레 무용수와 함께 발레 파드되를 보여주었습니다. 저는 그들의 듀엣이 너무도 감명 깊어 공연 내내 눈물을 흘렸습니다. 저는 발레 세계에서 자라며 오랜 시간 순위권에 들기를 바래왔습니다. 때문에 싹이 트는 이 발레리나의 꿈이 이루어지는 것이, 전통적인 발레 환경에서는 일어날 것 같지 않은 일이라고 해도,  아플만큼 감동적이었습니다. 그건 제가 무용을 하고 싶은 발레 세계였습니다.

로라 모랄레스 데질라와 헬리오트 바에자 곤잘레스는 내면의 괴물에 대한 연극 무용 작품인 <내가 이 세상의 중심이오(Soy Todo El Mundo)>를 선보였습니다. 장애는 괴상함과 연결되어 온 역사가 있습니다. 하지만 내가 이 세상의 중심이오에서 개인 내면의 괴물은 자유와 같습니다. 내면의 괴물을 발견하는 것이 인간을 해방시켜 더 진솔하고 정직한 표현으로 이어질 수 있는 것입니다. 제가 가장 좋아하는 공연 장르가 연극-무용이라는 점에서, 이 작품에서 목소리의 사용이 굉장히 신선했습니다. 로라와 헬리오트가 말을 하고 노래를 부르기 시작했을 때, 무용제의 다른 작품들은 모두 음향 시스템 위에 음악을 입혔다는 것을 깨달았습니다. 로라와 헬리오트의 움직임을 보는 동시에 그들의 목소리를 들으니, 그들이 표현의 자유를 찾는 주체임이 드러났습니다.

제가 생각하기에 미국의 전문 장애 무용계에서는, 지적 장애를 가진 사람들이 가장 소외되어 있어 지지를 받지 못하고, 주목을 받더라도 가장 마지막에 보여집니다. 하지만 키아다에서는 거의 모든 공연의 밤마다 지적 장애를 가진 무용수들이 공연을 했습니다. 제가 가장 마음에 들었던 작품은 홍댄스 컴퍼니 X 춤추는 은평 재활원의 <가능한 춤 2022(Possible Dance 2022)>이었습니다.  이 작품은 출연한 무용수 전원이 발달장애를 갖고 있고 그들 스스로 무대를 만듭니다(발달장애를 갖지 않은 무용수가 그들을 “가이드”하는 것이 아니었다는 의미입니다). 그들의 즉흥성은 다이내믹했고, 또 전혀 예측할 수 없었기에, 진정한 즉흥이라고 느꼈습니다. 이 무용수들은 제가 무용을 하며 받았던 훈련처럼, 무엇이 “좋은” 춤이고 무엇이 “안 좋은”춤인지에 대한 세뇌 과정을 겪지 않았을 것이라고 생각합니다. 따라서 이 무용수들의 움직임은 그런 우스운 위계 질서를 드러내지 않습니다.

장애 무용은 우리가 공연을 관람할 때 우리의 예상을 뒤섞습니다. 그럼에도 우리가 같은 형태의 장애만을 반복해서 본다면 그것에 대한 예술적인 관심은 줄어듭니다. 장애는 많은 인구가 갖고 있으며 세계와 만나는 다양한 방식을 포괄합니다. 저는 ‘누가 무용수가 될 수 있는가?’ 라는 질문에 도전하는 몸을 무대에서 보고 싶습니다. 이뿐만 아니라 제가 무용계에 있으며 “좋은” 춤으로 인식하도록 선입견을 갖게 만든 것에 도전하는 몸을 보고 싶습니다. 키아다는 바로 그것을 가능하게 했습니다.

Luda Lee and Jiyoon Baek, Photo courtesy Luda Lee

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The post A Glimpse into Disability Dance Artistry in Another Corner of the World appeared first on Stance on Dance.

This year marks Stance on Dance’s 10th birthday. In honor of the occasion (and a bit of a coincidence as well), I am pleased to announce that Stance on Dance has become a nonprofit and received 501c3 status. Stance on Dance’s nonprofit mission is to educate the dance community and wider audiences about dance from the perspective of underrepresented voices and access points. One way my board and I are fulfilling our mission is by launching a twice-yearly print publication that features and supports more dance writers and thus shares more perspectives. We will also distribute copies to dance educational institutions and to our donors who make this possible.

Allow me to wax philosophic about how Stance on Dance got to this point. I started Stance on Dance as a blog in 2012. As a freelance dancer in the San Francisco Bay Area at the time, I felt frustrated with the ways dance was written about. It was often written about by people without a deep knowledge of the artform, it was often review and preview oriented (and the show is but the tip of the iceberg), and it tended to follow the money and cover major ballet and modern companies while overlooking the varied world of freelance artists who pour their energy (and often their earnings) into making their art exist.

My idea was simple enough: I would publish interviews with fellow dance artists in the San Francisco Bay Area as well as solicit and edit content from colleagues. The blog often had a tone of being “on the ground,” as opposed to the more formal reviews and previews I contributed to various publications around San Francisco. I took pride in it being by and for dance artists. I published content once to twice a week, and it generally consisted of interviews conducted by me, essays by various colleagues, cartoons drawn by my roommate Maggie Stack satirizing the dance world, and music recommendations by my friend Jake Padilla. As time went on, my friend Ryan Kelley wrote drink recommendations to pair with various shows, a calendar listing with a twist.

From the get go, I loved producing content about dance and organizing an editorial calendar. And while the bawdy cartoons and drink recommendations were fun, it was the interviews with various dance artists that gained the most traction. I had an affinity for writing, but I was by no means a trained journalist. I was a dancer. As a result of Stance on Dance’s growth during that first year, I started to look into graduate programs in arts journalism. Around the same time, the cost of living in San Francisco started to skyrocket due to the tech bubble, and I felt trapped as a dancer barely making ends meet. I decided my time in San Francisco had come to a close.

In 2013, I entered a master’s program in Arts Journalism at the University of Southern California on scholarship and, through moving to Los Angeles, Stance on Dance began to cover artists beyond the Bay Area. As I developed a more journalistic tone, the blog became more professional in its coverage, transforming from a site that was mostly circulated amongst colleagues, to an online publication that was beginning to command a serious readership. My master’s thesis was a redevelopment of Stance on Dance with a sleek redesign, a more engaged social media presence, and employment of metrics to track and understand readership.

In 2013, I also began working on what would become the book Beauty is Experience: Dancing 50 and Beyond, where I interviewed more than 50 dance artists over the age of 50 up and down the West Coast. I worked with Portland based photographer Gregory Bartning, who beautifully captured each interviewee. Our goal was to showcase the beauty and form in a dancer of any age, as well as to demonstrate how artistry enrichens with time. The compilation was published as a hardcover book in 2017.

After graduate school, I had the amazing opportunity to travel to South Africa to cover the National Arts Festival for Cue Newspaper, a printed daily arts newspaper that existed for the duration of the festival. Aside from the experience being a cultural whirlwind, I also began to appreciate for the first time how different print is from online content. Instead of an endless vertical scroll, themes could be developed across articles with the aid of good design. The reader’s attention is also different, with more sustained focus, as opposed to distraction after receiving notifications on a device. One day during my time in South Africa, I outlined a plan for a print version of Stance on Dance. Of course, I had graduate school debt, no job, and I didn’t even know where I would live next, but the seed was planted.

Upon returning to the states, I moved to Santa Fe, NM, and took a job as the editor of Fine Lifestyles Santa Fe, a glossy magazine that covered restaurants and shops in town. I didn’t care much for the content, but I relished the experience of working closely with a team of writers, photographers, sales reps, and designers to produce a print magazine. I took careful notes on the process, always having in the back of my mind that one day I might apply these skills to a print version of Stance on Dance.

Throughout grad school, my time in South Africa, and my time in Santa Fe working for the magazine, I continued to produce weekly (and often bi-weekly) content for Stance on Dance. As a result of working on the dancing over 50 book project as well as through my various experiences post graduate school, Stance on Dance increasingly became devoted to elevating the voices of those who are often marginalized in the dance world. These include older dancers, dancers of color, dancers who identify as LGBTQ, dancers who have a disability, fat dancers, dancers who live outside major metropolitan areas, women in leadership positions, dancers working outside well-funded institutions, and dancers who practice forms outside the Western canon. Through focusing on perspectives that have traditionally been marginalized in dance journalism, Stance on Dance found its footing as a journal where ideas and ways of working that challenge the status quo are covered and celebrated.

In 2017, I embarked on a second book project, this time in collaboration with Austin/Finland based dance educator Silva Laukkanen, interviewing professional dancers with disabilities. Breadth of Bodies: Discussing Disability in Dance came out this spring 2022 and features 35 professional dancers with disabilities in 15 countries. Through our interviews, Silva and I deepened our knowledge of problematic stereotypes, barriers to education, access issues, and terminology preferences. These interviews are accompanied with whimsical illustrations by San Francisco based artist Liz Brent-Maldonado.

That brings us to the present. After years of publishing weekly online content covering dance artists from many practices and places, Stance on Dance is excited to announce the launch of a twice-a-year print publication that will further promote dance and the many perspectives of its practitioners. This first issue features an interview by Sophia Diehl with dance movement therapist Giulia Carotenuto, an essay by Katie Flashner on relocating her life and dance practice from southern California to Maine, an essay by Cherie Hill on advocating for equity in dance spaces, an essay by Bhumi Patel on decolonizing praxis, three original dance inspired illustrations by Camille Taft, and an interview by Nikhita Winkler with French dance artist Illan Riviere. I also have contributed an interview with Miami-based choreographer Pioneer Winter on his intergenerational and physically integrated dance company, and an interview (translated and facilitated by Lorie House) with Colombian butoh artist Brenda Polo and her collaborators who are studying the effects of butoh on the brain. We will eventually publish all this content on stanceondance.com, but I believe the design and opportunity for more sustained reading brings the content to life in a different, hopefully more enjoyable, way.

Where will you read your copy of Stance on Dance? And will you share it with your friends?

I hope you will consider supporting Stance on Dance in this exciting new format by helping spread the word or becoming a donor/subscriber. Many thanks to those of you who have supported and followed Stance on Dance in its many iterations over the past decade!

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To donate to support dance journlism and recieve two issues of Stance on Dance in print a year, visit stanceondance.com/support.

To learn more about the Spring/Summer 2022 issue or to order a single copy, visit stanceondance.com/print-publication.

The post Stance on Dance’s Journey to Print appeared first on Stance on Dance.

Mary Verdi-Fletcher is the founding artistic director of the Dancing Wheels Company & School in Cleveland, Ohio, and has been a pioneer in physically integrated dance for four decades. After starting the Dancing Wheels Company in 1980, Mary saw a need for more access to dance training, which led to the creation of the School of Dancing Wheels in 1990. Also an arts administrator and advocate, she has contributed to the development of state and national programs for arts and disability service organizations. She has worked to help pass significant legislation, including the Americans with Disabilities Act. 

Listen to the audobook recording of Mary Verdi-Fletcher’s interview here!

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book, visit here!

Image description: Mary is depicted standing mid-frame with her arms extended above her head in the shape of a V and her head tilted to the right. She appears standing in a white dress apparatus with several hoops and ruffles. Diagonal lines of blue energy extend off her waist along with the quotes, “I happen to be disabled, but first and foremost, I’m a dancer and artistic director.”

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How did you get into dance and what have been some highlights in your dance history?

I grew up in an artistic family; my mother was a dancer and my father was a musician. I was born with my disability, but my mother fostered my desire to follow in her footsteps. She would tell me bedtime stories of when she and my dad would travel across America in a vaudeville group. I used braces and crutches at the time, and my mother would put together little dances on me and my brother in our family room.

I just wanted to move, and I would break my brace all the time. My parents kept repairing it and finally got me a really strong brace. Then I broke my leg three times. At that point, they told me I had to use a wheelchair, so I started using a wheelchair when I was 12. I loved to watch American Bandstand and would groove to the music, and before long I broke the wheel off my wheelchair. Even to this day, I have a hard time watching dance because my body wants to join. If I go to a ballet, I twitch through the whole thing. I did back then as well.

In the early 70s, there was a resurgence of community dances. It was the beginning of the disco days. One day, this guy came up to me and asked if I wanted to dance. I said, “I don’t know if I can,” but we started experimenting and my wheels started gliding. I was doing the same partnering as the standup girls but using my wheels. It felt natural and unique, like skating and dancing at the same time. It had such a fluidity and speed to it.

I got hooked and started looking at how I could do various dances. I was going to different clubs, and soon everybody wanted to partner with me. My best friend’s husband was a good dancer, and we started to partner together regularly. We got very good.

Dance Fever was a competition show like Dancing with the Stars that was going around the country. The producer would travel to different states to select dancers to be on the show. I called up and asked to participate, and they took our names down to audition. We showed up that night and they were floored that I was in a wheelchair. They didn’t know what to do. We had put together a routine with a smash ending. My partner had been a gymnast, and at the end of our dance he would take a flying leap from across the stage, jump onto my armrests, and over my head. The crowd went wild. There were 2,000 people in the audience, and we got a standing ovation. Looking back now, there are so many more dance moves we could have done, but at the time we were blazing the trail.

We were chosen as alternates to be on the show. Interestingly, the producer said to me, “You know, this was really difficult. If I didn’t choose you, they would have said it was because you’re handicapped, and if I chose you, they would say it’s because you’re handicapped.” I had never thought about it that way. This was before the Americans with Disabilities Act.

We started to get on a lot of different television shows, and then we were chosen to be on a Walt Disney show that highlighted all kinds of acts. There was even a dog act. I was talking to the dog’s mom who was telling me he performed all over the country. I thought, “If that dog can do it, then so can I.” She told me how her dog was sponsored by a dog food company. So I went to a wheelchair company, Invacare, and pitched my idea of doing shows and talking about their wheelchair if they gave me a new one, and the traveling would be paid for by their sponsorship. And they went for it. We did 72 shows a year all over the country. Before you know it, we got on bigger shows like CNN and Good Morning America. People saw us and wanted to be a part. Dancing Wheels was born.

At first we were just a dance company that got paid to perform. I wanted to reach more people who couldn’t necessarily afford to pay us and go to schools, so in 1990 I turned Dancing Wheels into a 501c3 and licensed and trademarked it. I was connected with Cleveland Ballet, and they were looking to expand their outreach and educational programs. They bought the license to be called Cleveland Ballet Dancing Wheels. In doing so, I told them they had to hire me to manage and develop their program. I worked there for 10 years.

By that time, we had really grown. We went from a small group to a full company of eight to 10 dancers. I started producing and commissioning pieces. I hired Sabatino Verlezza from New York to be the associate artistic director, and his wife Barbara Allegra Verlezza ran the school. They were with Dancing Wheels for almost 10 years. Sabotino did beautiful choreography and had amazing vision.

Dancers have come and gone over the years. Some have been with me a very long time. I have several dancers who I am still really good friends with. Our repertoire has over 72 pieces in it now. It’s hard to believe it’s been 40 years.

How would you describe your current dance practice?

The company takes class everyday Monday through Friday. Typically, it’s ballet, modern, or contemporary, and we also have a conditioning class. Our 12 to 3 p.m. time slot is always immersed in restaging works or the creative process of developing new works. The dancers are full time, so they work 12 months out of the year and have paid vacations, holidays, and sick days. Nobody gets paid a tremendous amount, but it’s consistent. The dancers can rely on that base salary, and then they get paid extra for performances and teaching.

When you tell people you are a dancer, what are the most common reactions you receive?

What I love is when parents tell little kids at a show, “You know, she’s a dancer.” The kids will cock their head. You can see they don’t want to be rude, but they don’t know what their mother or father is talking about. Then I do a little twirl with them and they start to get it.

What are some ways people discuss dance with regards to disability that you feel carry problematic implications or assumptions?

The number one thing is they think that if they’ve seen one physically integrated dance company, they’ve seen them all. That’s an issue with presenters too: “Oh, we presented Dancing Wheels, so we don’t need to present AXIS Dance Company,” or vice versa. I’ve found over the years that attitude has narrowed the opportunities for touring. Presenters will book several modern or ballet companies, but only one physically integrated dance company. They think it’s all the same.

Do you believe there are adequate training opportunities for dancers with disabilities? If not, what areas would you specifically like to see improved?

More and more now, integrated companies are providing training. They almost all have summer intensives. Compared to when I started dancing, there are leaps and bounds more training opportunities, but not at the university level.

We did our first level one certification of the Dancing Wheels teacher training method recently and learned a lot by doing it. We’re offering another level one certification soon. I notice that a lot of people in other countries revere our company and our teaching process more than people in the US.

We’re always going to be at a standstill at the university level as long as dance faculty are saying it’s too cumbersome and takes too much time to teach students with disabilities, or it’s going to negatively affect the non-disabled students. It doesn’t have to if you know the technique of translation. Ours isn’t the only one, but teachers need to understand there are ways to do it.

Sometimes I just want to throw my hands up. I’m tired of preaching this.

Would you like to see disability in dance assimilated into the mainstream?

It is in the mainstream in that Dancing Wheels competes with other dance companies for opportunities, whether they’re disabled or not. We’re in showcases and mainstage concerts. It’s a competitive field, and we participate in the mainstream in that way.

There’s a whole split where it seems like the younger mindset wants to put their disability first. They are proud of their disability and want to be known as a disabled dancer or disabled choreographer. But then there are mindsets like mine where I happen to be disabled, but first and foremost, I’m a dancer and artistic director. I never say I’m a disabled artistic director.

I go back to the African American community. How many say, “I’m a Black choreographer”? People know they’re Black. Seeing is believing. If you’re a dancer, you’re a dancer. You don’t have to make your identity so in-your-face all the time. But those people have a right to their opinion, and I have a right to mine.

If a presenter brings us in, we’re going to put on a high-quality show that happens to have some wheelchair dancers and standup dancers working together. It will be artistically high level and entertaining. For me, entertainment means we impact people, and the audience will have a feeling, whether it’s sorrow or joy.

What is your preferred term for the field?

I use “physically integrated dance.” It’s a much broader term that connotes more than just wheelchair dancers and standup dancers. Our company is integrated in a lot of different ways beyond disability: gender, ethnicity, age. When I explain to kids what “physically integrated dance” is, I break it down. I ask them what “integrated” means. It means being together. What does “physical” refer to? The body. We’re all different bodies moving together. And then the kids get it.

In your perspective, is the field improving with time?

Academia is not, and I think presenters are afraid. I think presenters are afraid of dance in general. It’s far more expensive than presenting music or theater. Our heyday in terms of touring was before 9/11. Now, presenters want to know if we’ll sell seats like Alvin Ailey.

The amount of integrated companies, as well as dancers and choreographers with disabilities, really has improved. They are taking hold and developing themselves. But they are still not a commodity. I go to hire a wheelchair dancer and it’s like pulling teeth. And then I often have to train the wheelchair dancers from scratch. It takes a long time to develop a dancer.

Photo courtesy Dancing Wheels
Mary Verdi-Fletcher is in profile under a spotlight onstage. She is sitting in her wheelchair with one arm raised and her face lifted. She is wearing a white dress.

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To learn more about Dancing Wheels, visit dancingwheels.org.

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

This interview was conducted in April 2020.

The post Mary Verdi-Fletcher: “Blazing the Trail” appeared first on Stance on Dance.

Hai Cohen was born in Jerusalem and became paralyzed from the chest down after jumping into the shallow water of a swimming pool. He became a music editor in the army radio station and studied Philosophy. Hai graduated from the Sam Spiegel Film and Television School and went on to create documentary films. He is a dancer, teacher, and co-manager with Tali Wertheim at Vertigo Power of Balance, which operates out of Vertigo Eco Art Village near Jerusalem. He has practiced contact improvisation since 2000 and leads workshops and projects in disabled and non-disabled contact improvisation in Israel and abroad.

Listen to the audobook recording of Hai Cohen’s interview here!

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

לקריאה בעברית נא לגלול למטה. (To read in Hebrew, please scroll down.)

Image description: Hai is depicted facing back with his arms extended to the sides. His wheelchair is blue, he is dressed in gray, and he casts a large red shadow of his image as if he is facing a wall. The quotes, “It’s about creating beauty in the world” and “It doesn’t need to have relevance to others” hover around him.

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How did you get into dance and what have been some highlights in your dance history?

I was injured when I was 13. I jumped into shallow water in a swimming pool. I got back to so-called “normal life” in high school. In Israel we have the army so, after high school, I volunteered for the army and became a music editor at the army radio station. After that, I studied film for five years and ended up making documentaries as well as experimenting with video. While doing some research for a film in 2000, I met a dancer who invited me to an integrated dance workshop. I said no, that it was not my interest, but she insisted so eventually I joined. The workshop was through Vertigo Dance Company and hosted by Adam Benjamin for the creation of a new piece. The workshop was three days long and was very powerful for me.

After the workshop, Adam went back to England and then came back to Israel to start working on the piece. It was two or three months of rehearsal and, a year after the workshop in 2001, we premiered the piece. There were four participants with disabilities who joined the original cast. The name of the piece was Power of Balance. We performed it for three years.

At the same time, I was researching contact improvisation with Tali Wertheim. We wanted to figure out how to continue integrated dance in Israel. One year into performing Power of Balance, I began teaching. It was the start of a branch of Vertigo Dance Company, also called Power of Balance, that is an integrated dance center for people with and without disabilities.

Tali and I taught workshops and created some works for the stage, including a duet and a trio with another dancer, Maya Resheff, who is not disabled. The trio, 11,711 Stone Steps at Nikko, was a highlight for me because it incorporated haiku. I try to incorporate haiku into everything I touch. When I worked in film, I tried to create cinematic haikus, and with this piece I was trying to make a dance haiku within the structure and spirit by using contact improvisation.

I’ve also been part of the Israeli contact improv association that has been around for many years. I think the first festival was around the time I started dancing, and it grew slowly over eight or nine years. It is very significant for our work, which is not only directed to the integrated dance field but also to the contact improvisation field in Israel and around the world.

As far as other highlights, in 2007, Alex Shmurak (a dancer and a friend) and I did a collaboration with a company in Ethiopia where we choreographed Adugna. I also made a documentary about the project. In 2013, we did a co-production with Gerda König called HOMEZONE. Now, we’re in the middle of a new process by choreographer Sharon Fridman, who is originally from Israel but lives in Madrid. It’s his first time working with an integrated cast, but he’s a rising star in the dance world. I’m not actually dancing in this piece, but I’m helping to manage it, so I’m very much involved. The piece has 10 dancers, five with disabilities and five without.

How would you describe your current dance practice?

I teach with Tali a training for integrated contact improvisation. The course is a full day once a week, and it’s a two-year program. Of course, it’s integrated for participants of all kinds of abilities. We’re trying to make the model co-teaching in an integrated team, one teacher with a disability and one without. That has a lot of power. This is our main practice for the past four years. We also do one-time projects and classes, like with a dance department in a high school together with the special education kids, or offering professional development for teachers in integrated dance so they have the tools to work with any kid.

When you tell people you are a dancer, what are the most common reactions you receive?

Many people think I’m joking, and then they see I’m not smiling. Usually I don’t have the energy to explain. Most people just have a question mark. Some ask, “With your wheelchair?”

When I teach, there are people in the class who at first don’t know I’m the teacher. I sense that they think I’m something exceptional but they still see dancing with me as an option. Maybe because the contact improvisation world is more open, dancing with someone with a disability is more of an option.

What are some ways people discuss dance with regards to disability that you feel carry problematic implications or assumptions?

When I go into a restaurant and there are stairs, I don’t get mad. I ask someone to help me up the stairs. I don’t have the energy to get angry. Of course I believe that integrated dance should be much more supported, and I hope that in the future we can teach anyone who wants to dance. I feel like I have two worlds; I really believe in this when I teach and present work, but when it’s personal, I find I’m not as involved. It’s more enjoyable not to be angry so much.

I’m not so interested in what people think about the choreographed work. There are so many opinions in the world. Some I believe; many I don’t believe. I’ve learned how to look at the creation process from my own point of view, from what I wish to see in dance or in film. For some, my films are slow and boring, but it’s something I like to see, like an endless shot where nothing happens. I like to see time as the value of discovery.

Maybe it’s different when I think about participants in my classes. There’s a variety of experiences within the same class. Some enjoy it, some not. I am giving a class though, which is different than giving a performance. I don’t give a performance for the audience. It’s more about creating beauty in the world. It doesn’t need to have relevance to others. But when I’m teaching, it matters to me what the students’ experience is. If I see someone suffering or having a hard time, I feel responsibility. But at the same time, I can accept that people don’t always enjoy my teaching. It’s fine.

As for the press, this new piece we’re working on has got me thinking a bit different than I was before. Before, I would have said to try and see it as professional dance. Now I think it’s more about the approach of the integration. In this new piece, Sharon is a bit brave. He is putting disability onstage and showing it as something weak and at the same time showing its power. He has managed to show these two qualities that actually everyone has. People with disabilities sometimes need more help. This is a reality and not something we need to hide or wrap in beauty.

For example, one of the dancers has cerebral palsy and walks with crutches. He can also walk without them but his balance is not good and he has a funny walk with short steps. In the piece, he walks without the crutches. It’s very powerful to see the weakness and difference, to see the naked walk without the crutches. The crutches hide the original walk. They not only help him physically, they also help to normalize him. But if he walks the way he does, without crutches, I can see it, feel it, and benefit from it. Appreciating this kind of detail is something different than what I thought before.

The press should understand that disability in dance isn’t something to portray as something that it’s not. Still, see it as a professional act. And of course, it should not be portrayed as charity or therapy.

Do you believe there are adequate training opportunities for dancers with disabilities? If not, what areas would you specifically like to see improved?

Of course not. Every studio, after school program, and university program should have the ability to accept anyone with any disability. But of course, there is a lot of work to be done. What happens sometimes is people open their doors to disabled students without the ability to teach them. You need the knowledge to understand how to work with a diversity of bodies and abilities before you open the doors. Many difficulties and frustrations can arise.

We need teacher trainings to start with. And then I would prioritize the schools. It should start from the beginning, even for students without disabilities to be open to this from a young age and see students with disabilities as participants.

Would you like to see disability in dance assimilated into the mainstream?

Yes, of course. It should be treated the same as other dance fields. It should be expected to be as good and as professional and be given the same space and recognition. Saying that, I’m not sure how I feel about integrated dance festivals. They can offer options that other festivals can’t. But at the same time, it can feel like a ghetto with an inner dialogue only within the community.

I would like to see good dance, period. If it’s integrated dance, then maybe I would be happier because I’m closer to it. But I would just love to see a good performance. I don’t want integrated dance to be promoted just because it’s integrated dance. It should be good. There’s still not enough good dance.

What is your preferred term for the field?

I’m really tired of dealing with terms. In Hebrew, it’s even worse; it’s much easier in English. In Hebrew, the word “disabled” is like an insult. I used to not answer when people used that word. Over the years I’ve gotten tired and now I use it myself and I don’t mind. Still, I agree there’s a lot of meaning behind the words we choose. At Power of Balance, we’re using “integrated,” but “inclusive” is also great. “People with diverse bodies” is also strong.

In your perspective, is the field improving with time?

Of course, yes. I think there are big steps. I can see development from our center in Israel and more support from the government. There’s still a long way to go, but it’s really different from what it was. There are more audiences and disabled participants who want to experience this.

Hai Cohen, photo courtesy the artist.
Image description: Hai is facing the back wall with outstretched arms. A standing dancer is behind him reaching toward him. Both of their shadows project on the wall.

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To learn more about Vertigo Power of Balance, visit vertigo.org.il/en/power-balance.

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

This interview was conducted in April 2020.

~~

חי כהן: ״אני רוצה לראות מחול טוב, נקודה.״

מאת סילבה לאוקאנן; עריכה ע״י אמאלי ווידרהולט

חי כהן נולד בירושלים והפך למשותק מהחזה ומטה בעקבות קפיצה למים רדודים בבריכת שחיה. הוא היה עורך מוסיקלי בגלי צה״ל ולמד פילוסופיה. חי הוא בוגר בית הספר לקולנוע וטלויזיה ע״ש סם שפיגל והמשיך בעשיית סרטים תיעודיים. הוא רקדן, מורה ומנהל שותף יחד עם טלי ורטהיים את ורטיגו כח האיזון, הפועל בורטיגו כפר אמנות אקולוגי לא רחוק מירושלים. הוא מתרגל קונטקט אימפרוביזציה משנת 2000 ומנחה סדנאות ופרוייקטים לרקדנים עם וללא מגבלה, בישראל ובעולם.

~~

איך התחלת לרקוד ומה היו נקודות עיקריות בקריירת המחול שלך?

נפצעתי כשהייתי בן 13. קפצתי למים רדודים בבריכת שחיה. חזרתי למה שנקרא חיים נורמלים בתיכון. בישראל, יש לנו צבא, לכן, אחרי התיכון התנדבתי לצבא והייתי עורך מוסיקלי בתחנת הרדיו הצבאית. לאחר מכן למדתי קולנוע חמש שנים שלאחריהן עשיתי סרטים תיעודיים ווידאו נסיוני. בזמן תחקיר לסרט שעשיתי בשנת 2000, פגשתי רקדנית שהזמינה אותי לסדנת מחול משולב. אמרתי לא, זה לא מעניין אותי, אבל היא התעקשה ולבסוף הצטרפתי. הסדנה היתה דרך להקת המחול ורטיגו בהנחיית אדם בנג׳מין לקראת יצירה חדשה. הסדנה ארכה שלושה ימים והיתה מאוד חזקה עבורי.

לאחר הסדנה, אדם חזר לאנגליה ואז חזר שוב לישראל להתחיל לעבוד על היצירה. אחרי חודשיים שלושה של חזרות, ושנה אחרי הסדנה, ב 2001, העלנו את הפרימיירה של העבודה. ארבעה משתתפים עם מגבלה הצטרפו להרכב המקורי. שם העבודה היה ״כח האיזון״. הופענו איתה במשך שלוש שנים.

באותו הזמן, חקרתי קונטקט אימפרוביזציה עם טלי ורטהיים. רצינו לגלות כיצד אפשר להמשיך לרקוד מחול משולב בישראל. שנה מתחילת ההופעות של כח האיזון התחלתי ללמד. זו היתה תחילתו של ענף בלהקת המחול ורטיגו, גם בשם כח האיזון, שהוא מרכז למחול משולב לאנשים עם וללא מגבלה.

טלי ואני לימדנו סדנאות ויצרנו מספר עבודות לבמה, כולל דואט וטריו יחד עם רקדנית נוספת ללא מגבלה, מיה רשף. הטריו, ״11,711 מדרגות אבן בניקו״, היה אחד מהשיאים עבורי בגלל שהוא התבסס על הייקו. אני מנסה לבסס על הייקו כל דבר שאני נוגע בו. כשעבדתי בקולנוע, ניסיתי לייצר שירי הייקו קולנועיים, ובעבודה הזו ניסיתי לייצר מחול שמתבסס על הרוח והמבנה של הייקו, תוך שימוש בקונטקט אימפרוביזציה דוקא כצורה מקובעת.

אני גם חלק מעמותת הקונטקט אימפרו הישראלית שקיימת כבר הרבה מאוד שנים. אני חושב שהפסטיבל הראשון התקיים קרוב לזמן שהתחלתי לרקוד, ולאט לאט גדל במשך שמונה או תשע שנים. הוא מאוד חשוב לעבודה שלנו, שמכוונת לא רק לשדה המחול המשולב, אלא גם לשדה של קונטקט אימפרוביזציה בישראל ובעולם.

לגבי נקודות עיקריות נוספות, ב 2007, אלכס שמורק (רקדנית וחברה) ואני ייצרנו שיתוף פעולה עם להקה  באתיופיה ליצירת כוריאוגרפיה ל״אדונייה״. אני גם עשיתי דוקומנטרי על הפרוייקט הזה. ב 2013, קיימנו שיתוף פעולה עם גרדה קניג ב ״הומזון״. כעת אנחנו באמצע תהליך חדש מאת הכוריאוגרף שרון פרידמן, במקור ישראלי, אבל חי במדריד. זו פעם ראשונה עבורו לעבוד עם הרכב משולב, אבל הוא כוכב עולה בעולם המחול. אני לא רוקד ביצירה הזו, אלא עוזר לנהל אותה, כך שאני מאוד מעורב. ביצירה הזו עשרה רקדנים, חמישה עם מגבלה וחמישה ללא.

כיצד היית מתאר את עיסוקך הנוכחי במחול?

אני מלמד עם טלי מסלול הכשרה לקונטקט אימפרוביזציה משולב. הקורס הוא יום מלא פעם בשבוע, וזוהי תכנית דו שנתית. כמובן, התכנית משולבת עבור משתתפים עם יכולות שונות. אנחנו מנסים לייצר מודל של הוראה משותפת בצוות משולב, מנחה אחד עם מגבלה ואחד ללא. יש לזה כח גדול. זו הפרקטיקה העיקרית שלנו בארבע שנים האחרונות. אנחנו גם עושים פרוייקטים חד פעמיים ושיעורים, לדוגמא שיתוף של מגמת מחול בתיכון יחד עם נוער מהחינוך המיוחד, או מציעים התפתחות מקצועית במחול משולב עבור מורים כך שיהיו להם כלים לעבוד עם כל ילד.

כשאתה מספר לאנשים שאתה רקדן, מה התגובות הנפוצות ביותר שאתה מקבל?

הרבה אנשים חושבים שאני צוחק, ואז הם רואים שאני לא מחייך. בדרך כלל אין לי כח להסביר. לרוב האנשים פשוט יש סימן שאלה. חלק שואלים, ״עם כיסא הגלגלים שלך?״

כשאני מלמד, יש אנשים בשיעור שבהתחלה לא יודעים שאני המורה. אני מרגיש שהם חושבים שאני יוצא דופן, אבל הם עדיין רואים את הריקוד איתי כאפשרות. אולי בגלל שעולם קונטקט האימפרוביזציה הוא פתוח יותר, ריקוד עם מישהו עם מגבלה יותר אפשרי.

מהן הדרכים בהן אנשים דנים בריקוד בכל הנוגע למגבלות שאתה מרגיש שיש להם השלכות או הנחות בעייתיות?

כשאני מגיע להכנס למסעדה, ויש שם מדרגות, אני לא מתעצבן. אני מבקש ממישהו לעזור לי לעלות במדרגות. אין לי כח להתעצבן. כמובן, אני מאמין שמחול משולב צריך לקבל הרבה יותר תמיכה, ואני מקווה שבעתיד נוכל ללמד כל אחד שרוצה לרקוד. אני מרגיש שיש לי שני עולמות; אני באמת מאמין בזה כשאני מלמד ומציג עבודות, אבל במישור אישי, אני מוצא שאני לא כל כך מעורב. זה מהנה יותר לא לכעוס כל כך.

אני לא מתעניין כל כך במה שאנשים חושבים על היצירה הכוריאוגרפית. יש כל כך הרבה דעות בעולם. לחלק אני מאמין; להרבה אני לא מאמין. למדתי איך להסתכל על תהליך היצירה מנקודת המבט האישית שלי, ממה שאני הייתי רוצה לראות במחול או בקולנוע. לחלק, הסרטים שלי איטיים ומשעממים, כמו שוטים אינסופיים ששום דבר לא קורה בהם, אבל זה משהו שאני מחבב לראות. אני אוהב לראות את הזמן כערך של גילוי.

אולי זה אחרת כשאני חושב על משתתפים בשיעורים שלי. יש מגוון של התנסויות בתוך אותו שיעור. חלק נהנים, חלק לא. למרות זאת, כשאני נותן שיעור זה אחרת מלתת הופעה. אני לא נותן הופעה עבור הקהל – זה יותר קשור ליצירת יופי בעולם, זה לא חייב להיות בהקשר לאחרים. אבל כשאני מלמד, זה משנה לי מהי החוויה של התלמידים. אם אני רואה מישהו סובל או מתקשה, אני מרגיש אחריות. אבל יחד עם זאת, אני יכול לקבל שלא תמיד אנשים יהנו מההוראה שלי. זה בסדר.

לגבי העיתונות, איזו עצה היית נותן לכתב שאינו מתמצא בכתיבה על אמני מחול עם מוגבלויות?

היצירה החדשה הזו שאנחנו עובדים עליה גרמה לי לחשוב קצת אחרת ממה שחשבתי קודם. לפני כן הייתי אומר לנסות ולראות בזה ריקוד מקצועי. עכשיו, אני חושב שזה קשור יותר לגישת האינטגרציה. ביצירה החדשה הזו שרון קצת אמיץ. הוא מעמיד על הבמה מוגבלות, מראה אותה כמשהו חלש ובו בזמן מראה את הכח שלה. הוא הצליח להראות את שתי התכונות הללו שלמעשה לכולם יש. אנשים עם מוגבלות לפעמים זקוקים לעזרה רבה יותר. זו מציאות ולא משהו שאנחנו צריכים להסתיר או לעטוף ביופי.

לדוגמא, לאחד הרקדנים יש שיתוק מוחין והוא הולך עם קביים. הוא יכול גם ללכת בלעדיהם, אך שיווי המשקל שלו לא טוב ויש לו הליכה מצחיקה עם צעדים קצרים. ביצירה הוא הולך בלי הקביים. זה מאוד עוצמתי לראות את החולשה וההבדל, לראות את ההליכה העירומה בלי הקביים. הקביים מסתירים את ההליכה המקורית. הם לא רק עוזרים לו פיזית; הם גם עוזרים לנרמל אותו. אבל אם הוא הולך כמו שהוא הולך, ללא קביים, אני יכול לראות את זה, להרגיש אותו ולהפיק מזה תועלת. הערכת פרט מסוג זה היא משהו שונה ממה שחשבתי קודם.

העיתונות צריכה להבין שמוגבלות במחול אינה דבר שאפשר להציג כמשהו שהיא לא. עדיין, לראות אותה כפעולה מקצועית. וכמובן, לא לתאר אותה כצדקה או כטיפול.

האם אתה מאמין שיש אפשרויות תרגול מתאימות לרקדנים עם מוגבלות? אם לא, באילו אזורים היית רוצה במיוחד לראות שיפור?

ברור שלא. לכל סטודיו, לכל חוג, ולכל תכנית אוניברסיטאית, צריכה להיות יכולת לקבל כל אדם עם מוגבלות כלשהי. אבל כמובן שיש הרבה עבודה. מה שקורה לפעמים הוא שאנשים פותחים את דלתותיהם לתלמידים עם מגבלה ללא יכולת ללמד אותם. אתה צריך את הידע כדי להבין כיצד לעבוד עם מגוון גופים ויכולות לפני שאתה פותח את הדלתות. קשיים רבים ותסכולים יכולים להיווצר.

אנו צריכים הדרכות מורים מלכתחילה. ואז הייתי מתעדף את בתי הספר. זה צריך להתחיל מההתחלה, גם עבור תלמידים ללא מוגבלות, להיות פתוחים לכך מגיל צעיר ולראות תלמידים עם מוגבלות כמשתתפים.

האם תרצה לראות מוגבלות בריקוד נטמעת במיינסטרים?

כן כמובן, צריך להתייחס אליה כמו לתחומי מחול אחרים. צריך לצפות ממנה שתהיה טובה ומקצועית, ולתת לה את אותו מרחב והכרה. אחרי שאמרתי את זה, אני לא בטוח מה אני מרגיש לגבי פסטיבלי מחול משולב. הם יכולים להציע אפשרויות שפסטיבלים אחרים אינם יכולים, אך יחד עם זאת, זה יכול להרגיש כמו גטו עם דיאלוג פנימי רק בתוך הקהילה.

הייתי רוצה לראות מחול טוב, נקודה. אם זה מחול משולב, אולי הייתי שמח יותר כי אני קרוב אליו יותר, אבל אני פשוט אשמח לראות הופעה טובה. אני לא רוצה שמחול משולב יקודם רק בגלל שזה מחול משולב. זה צריך להיות טוב. עדיין אין מספיק מחול טוב.

מה המונח המועדף עליך לתחום?

נמאס לי באמת להתמודד עם מונחים. בעברית זה אפילו יותר גרוע; זה הרבה יותר קל באנגלית. בעברית המילה “נכה” היא כמו עלבון. פעם לא עניתי כשאנשים השתמשו במילה הזו. לאורך השנים נמאס לי ועכשיו אני משתמש בזה בעצמי ולא אכפת לי. בכל זאת, אני מסכים שיש הרבה משמעות מאחורי המילים שאנחנו בוחרים. בכח האיזון אנחנו משתמשים ב”משולב”, אבל ”הכלה” זה גם נהדר. “אנשים עם גופים מגוונים” זה גם חזק.

מנקודת המבט שלך, האם התחום משתפר עם הזמן?

כמובן, כן. אני חושב שנעשים צעדים גדולים. אני יכול לראות התפתחות במרכז שלנו בישראל ויותר תמיכה מצד הממשלה. יש עוד דרך ארוכה, אבל זה ממש שונה ממה שהיה. ישנם יותר קהלים ומשתתפים עם מוגבלות שרוצים לחוות זאת.

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The post Hai Cohen: “I Would Like to See Good Dance, Period” appeared first on Stance on Dance.

Nastija Fijolič is a Slovenian photographer, vlogger, and competitive ballroom dancer who competes in World Para Dance Sport. She was born with spinal muscular dystrophy and uses a wheelchair.

Listen to the audobook recording of Nastija Fijolič’s interview here!

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book, visit here!

Image description: Nastija is depicted seated in her wheelchair facing front. Her right arm is extended to the side, and she is looking directly right over her arm. She is wearing a gray dress with a light gray scarf in her hair. Red strokes of energy curve around her with the quotes, “They still don’t include us. We always have to push them…” and “Is this dance hall accessible? Are there toilets for wheelchair users? Where will we have room to get dressed?”

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How did you get into dance and what have been some highlights in your dance history?

When I was young, I thought dance was so girly. I studied photography and filmmaking, and I ended up making a promo video for a para dance club. I said, “Man, that looks fun, I bet with a trainer I could dance a little bit.” I tried it and stayed and started to compete. It’s been eight years now. I was hooked immediately by the music, the movement, the energy of the competition, the drive. And the people became like family. When I go to competitions, I know almost everybody even though it’s like 150 dancers.

I dance ballroom, mostly Latin. I have a walking dance partner. We call this combi because it combines one person in a wheelchair and one standing dancer. We also have single, which is a dancer on their own, and duo, which is two dancers in wheelchairs. There are three basic categories, which includes Latin and freestyle. And in all that, we have class one and class two. Class one is people who are more disabled, like they have a spinal injury. Class two is people without an arm or leg. I am class one because I use an electric wheelchair in everyday life, but I use a manual wheelchair when I dance. That’s a rough description of para dance sport.

A highlight was placing second in the European Championship two or three years ago with my wheelchair dance partner, so in duo. That was quite surprising because we didn’t expect it. There were a lot of people competing in the Latin and freestyle category, and we took second place.

If I’m honest, competition is really hard for me because there are people with different kinds of disabilities in the competition. I have spinal muscular dystrophy, which means my muscles are not strong enough to push myself really fast or do the same move 10 times equally. I can do it maybe three times, but I compete with people who don’t have that kind of disability. They might have a spine injury from the waist down, but they have normal hands. I go, do my best, and see what happens. That’s why second place was surprising, because I didn’t expect it.

How would you describe your current dance practice?

Before the pandemic, we had group lessons two times per week for everyone in the dance club. It was to improve the movement and to physically get stronger and more prepared. When I dance, I mostly use my upper body, so I have to get physiotherapy one or two times a week for my legs and my spine. And then, from time to time, my partner and I work with a trainer to improve the choreography and make some movements better. Being physical four to five times a week is the maximum for me. I cannot do more because my muscles need time to rest. Two or three days before a competition, I do not train. It took me like three years to figure that out. We used to train extra before a competition and then I wouldn’t be able to move my arms. I decided maybe I needed to rest beforehand, and it was better.

When you tell people you are a dancer, what are the most common reactions you receive?

People still don’t accept para dancing as a sport. Have you seen the dancers in our competition? They’re really good. They do stuff that dancers in standing competitions do. I think people will eventually start to see it as a sport, but there’s not that mindset yet. When people see a dancer in an electric wheelchair, they’re like, “Oh, he or she is dancing, let’s clap.” Can I just punch those people in the face? That dancer in the wheelchair dances as much as he or she can. You have to be an artist to understand that. It’s the same with judges in competitions. They put me in fifth place because I’m not fast. I feel the music just as much as the person in third place. Para sport will never be fair because it’s not two people competing with the same injury or disability. But for the people who think para dance is not even a sport, I hope they figure it out.

What are some ways people discuss dance with regards to disability that you feel carry problematic implications or assumptions?

When people say, “You’re so inspirational,” I’m like, “Really? I feel sorry for you if I am an inspiration for you.” When I started dancing, I felt like everybody clapped for me because I’m in a wheelchair. I wondered: Did they see my dancing, or did they just see my wheelchair? That’s why I love to compete in para dance even though I know I will not win because I know they will judge me as a dancer, not as a wheelchair dancer.

The biggest “come on” moment is when I see the title of an article like, “She’s in a wheelchair, but she’s still dancing.” Maybe they could write, “She’s dancing, and she’s in a wheelchair,” or just, “She’s dancing.” I work in media, so I know the title has to be something that people will click and read. I get it. But see the person, not the thing they move with.

Another problem is we have these competitions all over the world, but we travel to a hotel that has two rooms that are accessible, and we have 100 people in wheelchairs. In the bathtub or shower there is a step. I’m like, “Shit, what now?” Some people in wheelchairs can move themselves with their arms, but I can’t. We somehow manage. Paula is one of the dancers who always gets the accessible room. I ask her if I can shower in her room because the shower is accessible. That’s what I love about our competitions: We can help each other and still be competitive.

In Slovenia we don’t have funding, and my dance wheelchair is the first thing I need to dance. I can still dance without my fake eyelashes, but I cannot dance without my wheels. In the Netherlands, if you compete in a sport for the country, you get new equipment every three years, like a new wheelchair or new skateboard. I bought my manual wheelchair and that’s it for life. And it was not cheap.

Those are some of the biggest problems in para dance sport, but mostly, I would really love to see all the people clap for me because of my dancing, not because of my disability.

Do you believe there are adequate training opportunities for dancers with disabilities? If not, what areas would you specifically like to see improved?

No, of course not. In my country we have one dance club that teaches para dance sport. Some people would say dance is dance so every club should teach para dance sport, but there are specific things that standing dancers don’t understand, like how to turn your wheelchair or how to use your body to make a roll. I live close enough to the club in Ljubljana that it’s not a problem, but for people who live two hours from here, they will not drive that far every other day to train.

The other thing is studios are not accessible. Where we train is only half accessible; I cannot go to the toilet, for example, because it’s too small. In Slovenia I haven’t found any studio that is totally accessible. This is another reason why we cannot train everywhere.

For three or four years now, para dance has been included in national competitions, but in January there was a competition and we were not invited. Our trainer said, “What’s the problem? We are part of your dancing community and a national sport. Why were we not included?” They said, “In the rules it’s written that only athletes can dance.” Our trainer was like, “Are you joking? They’re para athletes, so therefore they can compete.” They still don’t include us. We always have to push them. We always have to say, “Is this dance hall accessible? Are there toilets for wheelchair users? Where will we have room to get dressed?”

Would you like to see disability in dance assimilated into the mainstream?

We would love to be included. We would love for standing people to know we exist and dance the same and train. This is getting better every year because from time to time, our coach and the standing coach meet, and they make one big training with all the standing dancers and para dancers together. We all dance to the same music on the same floor at the same time.

But I still think it has to be separated because we are rolling, and they are walking. These are two very different things. I would prefer to separate into disabilities even further because if I know a dancer’s disability, I can tell a lot about how they will move best. If I see a person with cerebral palsy, I know they cannot make gentle moves. They will have spasms, so I cannot expect them to be really smooth. That’s why I think it’s important to know what disabilities people have.

Like I said earlier, in competitions we have class one and class two. Before every competition, there are four or five judges who ask us to put our hands in the air or do rotations, and they give us points. In the end, how many points you get determines which class you get put into. They put me in class two three times because I can put my arms up, but I cannot do it fast. They are like, “Can you do it, or can’t you?” If I say I cannot do it, and they see me do it on the dance floor, I will be suspended. Eventually, they understood and put me in class one.

What is your preferred term for the field?

Five years ago it was still “wheelchair dance sport,” but now it’s “para dance sport.” I think “para” is the best word. It sounds more professional. I would like to avoid “disability,” “handicapped,” or “wheelchair” to describe our dance.

It would be awesome if there was just “ballroom dancing,” but para dance is different than walking so it must be called something else. We did this project with Toyota a few years ago and they had this quote: “Make your disability ability.” I was like, yeah! Though I generally avoid words like “disability” because it has the association of pity.

In your perspective, is the field improving with time?

Of course it is. If it’s not getting better, then why are we doing it? Every year more people are included. More people know about our club or para dancing in general. Slowly we are getting there. With the coronavirus, I think it went five steps back, but it will get better. It has to.

Nastija Fijolič, Photo courtesy the artist.
Image description: Nastija, in her wheelchair and in a purple dress, and her partner, standing and in a black suit, dance with an open embrace in competition. Another couple dances behind them and judges watch in the background.

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To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

This interview was conducted in February 2021.

The post Nastija Fijolič: “Judge Me as A Dancer, Not as A Wheelchair Dancer” appeared first on Stance on Dance.

Lusi Insiati is a member of Nalitari Dance Troupe. She joined Nalitari, the only inclusive dance organization in Yogyakarta, Indonesia, when it was first established in 2013. Initially an art spectator and enthusiast, she became actively involved in dance after attending Nalitari’s very first workshop. Lusi continues to dance with Nalitari and has appeared in several performances, both in and out of Yogyakarta. She passionately continues expressing herself in art as an effort to increase public awareness of a more inclusive society.

Listen to the audobook recording of Lusi Insiati’s interview here!

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

Untuk membaca dalam bahasa Indonesia, silakan gulir ke bawah. (To read in Indonesian, please scroll down.)

Image description: Lusi is depicted sitting in a blue wheelchair facing the left corner of the frame on the diagonal. She is holding in front of her what appears to be two large red feathers. She is wearing gray and has intricate designs painted on her face. Red flames of energy erupt from her chair along with the quote, “Untuk menjadi benar-benar inklusif, itu harus lebih dari itu. Itu harus berarti semua orang” (translated: “To be really inclusive, it has to be more than that. It has to mean everyone.”)

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How did you get into dance and what have been some highlights in your dance history?

Initially, I was just an art enthusiast. I’ve always liked things related to art. When I saw my niece learning and practicing Balinese dance, I thought it would be fun to be able to dance.

I joined a pantomime group in March 2013. The pantomime event was for the anniversary of the city of Yogyakarta. Many organizations and communities were invited to perform, including a disability organization that I was part of that put on the pantomime performance. That same year, a friend from the pantomime group invited me to join Nalitari’s dance workshop. I’ve been dancing there since.

Every performance is a highlight. I had the chance to join a two-week workshop with Introdans from the Netherlands in 2014, and the last day we held a performance together. The experience was quite new for me at the time. I was excited to be selected to represent Nalitari in the collaboration. The dance foundation in Indonesia is traditional, but the dance foundation at Introdans was ballet. I was shocked. All the workshop participants learned a little about each other’s dance forms, and after that we created a collaborative dance that everyone could do. We weren’t forced to master anything, but instead use the knowledge to explore what we could do. The theme was “move!”

Once, Nalitari danced in the center of Yogyakarta under hard rain. It was terribly cold and my teeth were clenching, but that was okay. None of us called it quits. We kept dancing in the rain.

One piece I especially loved was called Circle of Life. The dance represented the circle of life from birth to death. We explored movement on that theme.

How would you describe your current dance practice?

At Nalitari, the teaching and practice method is adjusted to people with disabilities. Any movements we can do, that is what we do. At rehearsal, we don’t make a distinction between the people with and without disabilities. All the movements depend on interpretation.

Once we enter the repertoire, we learn what the dance is about so the dancers can learn how to express the idea. After that, there’s a part of the dance where dancers can explore the idea by ourselves and a part where there is a guideline for movement, but it doesn’t have to look the same.

We practice twice a month with all the members of Nalitari, but if there’s an upcoming performance, we add more practices. There are about 30 people involved with Nalitari.

During the pandemic, we haven’t had any practice. I haven’t been able to see my friends, but I practice at home.

When you tell people you are a dancer, what are the most common reactions you receive?

First they are surprised. Sometimes they’ll ask a question like, “How can it be?” or “What kind of dance do you do?” Then I answer by saying that I move the body parts that I can move. I always take the time to explain.

When collaborating with non-disabled people, there are always challenges. In the beginning, they might feel afraid to get close or they act awkwardly. But as time passes, people adjust and it automatically feels easier to get closer or communicate. We build understanding.

In Indonesia, inclusive dance is starting to happen more, but it’s not common. Sometimes other dance organizations invite disabled people to participate in a workshop, but they’re not like Nalitari. We dance inclusively all the time.

What are some ways people discuss dance with regards to disability that you feel carry problematic implications or assumptions?

Most of the time, comments from people who come to see our performances are positive and encouraging. They want to learn and see more. They want to know how we practice.

The concept of inclusive dance is not common in Indonesia. When we perform, people see us as a disability organization, and the way they write about us is that we’re amazing and great just because we work with people with disabilities. The comments are never about the art. Also, the non-disabled dancers are written about as supporting the disabled dancers, when in fact it is a collaboration. We work together side by side. We raise each other.

My dream is that all my disability friends can one day access dance, and that our performances are of good enough quality to be exhibited. I don’t want people to come to our show because they have pity, but because the dancing is good quality.

Do you believe there are adequate training opportunities for dancers with disabilities? If not, what areas would you specifically like to see improved?

Not yet, but if there’s someone who wants to do that, then why not?

There is also a limitation for people with disabilities to access traditional dance forms, but at Nalitari, we do not have those limitations because we do contemporary. Traditional dance is very strong here, especially in Yogyakarta. We have very strict standards. Even non-disabled people can’t do certain traditional dances because of their body shape. It’s a very strict culture. If you do traditional dance, you’re called a “dancer.”

For people with disabilities to follow all the rules of traditional dance is very difficult, but if institutions or universities start to understand that people have their own uniqueness, then perhaps things will one day change.

Here, we have a special school where all the children with disabilities go. We call it the Extraordinary School. Every region of Indonesia has at least one. Dance training would be especially great in those schools. They sometimes offer dance classes when there’s an upcoming competition or performance, but it’s not regular.

Nalitari has a yearly exhibition and we usually invite the teachers and students from the Extraordinary School for a workshop with us. I am one of the mentors for those workshops.

Would you like to see disability in dance assimilated into the mainstream?

We already are in Nalitari, because non-disabled and disabled people dance together. Outside Nalitari, one of my relatives is a dancer and is interested in dancing together with me. Regardless of disability, there is willingness. But up until now, it’s only willingness, not action. I believe that in the future there will be action, but not in the near future.

Typically, the challenges are with the stage or performance venue, that it is too high or there is no ramp. As a wheelchair user, sometimes I become a bother for people who have to carry me and my wheelchair.

What is your preferred term for the field?

In Yogyakarta, we use “inclusive dance.” But we still have people who think “inclusive” means only people with disabilities. They also think it means we only include one type of disability, like Deaf. To be really inclusive, it has to be more than that. It has to mean everyone. Nalitari has people who have physical disabilities, Down syndrome, Deafness, autism, and cerebral palsy. We only haven’t worked with blind people and people with mental disorders. But if they want to join, they are welcome.

In your perspective, is the field improving with time?

Many people with disabilities are starting to come out and their voices are being heard. This is clear in the number of invitations Nalitari has received to perform. When Nalitari started, mostly just the part of the government who works with disabled people would invite us to perform. Now, non-disability related organizations are starting to invite us. Nalitari was invited to perform in a mainstream dance festival a few years ago between Indonesia, Japan, and Korea. We were the only inclusive company to perform. It was a big honor for us to bring inclusive dance to an international stage.

My dream is for my disability friends to access any type of dance and that we can be accepted as we are.

Lusi Insiati, Photo courtesy the artist.
Image description: Lusi is sitting in her wheelchair on a diagonal. Her arm is reaching sideways with her uplifted hand appearing large as it is close to the camera. She is wearing a gold smock and black. Behind her is a black background.

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To learn more about Nalitari, visit nalitari.org.

To learn more about the Discussing Disability in Dance Book Project, visit here!

This interview was conducted in August 2020.

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Lusi Insiati: “Untuk Diterima Apa Adanya”

OLEH SILVA LAUKKANEN; DIEDIT OLEH EMMALY WIEDERHOLT; TERJEMAHAN OLEH YOANA WIDA KRISTIAWATI; ILUSTRASI LIZ BRENT-MALDONADO

Lusi Insiati adalah salah satu anggota kelompok tari Nalitari. Ia bergabung dengan Nalitari, satu-satunya organisasi tari inklusif di Yogyakarta, Indonesia, yang didirikan pada tahun 2013. Berawal sebagai penonton dan penikmat seni, ia aktif terlibat dalam seni tari setelah mengikuti workshop Nalitari yang pertama. Lusi kini terus menari bersama Nalitari dan telah tampil di beberapa pertunjukan, baik di dalam maupun di luar Yogyakarta. Lusi dengan penuh semangat terus mengekspresikan dirinya dalam seni sebagai upaya meningkatkan kesadaran publik akan masyarakat yang lebih inklusif.

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Bagaimana awalnya Anda dapat berkecimpung dalam tari dan apa saja sorotan dalam perjalanan tari Anda?

Awalnya saya hanya penyuka seni. Saya selalu menyukai hal-hal yang berhubungan dengan seni. Ketika saya melihat keponakan saya belajar dan berlatih tari Bali, saya pikir akan menyenangkan apabila bisa menari.

Pada Maret 2013 saya bergabung dalam sebuah kelompok untuk berpantomim. Acara pantomim itu diselenggarakan untuk memperingati HUT Kota Yogyakarta. Banyak organisasi dan komunitas diundang untuk tampil, termasuk organisasi penyandang disabilitas yang saya ikuti. Pada tahun yang sama, seorang teman dari kelompok pantomim tersebut mengundang saya untuk mengikuti workshop tari Nalitari. Saya pun menari di sana sejak saat itu.

Setiap pertunjukan adalah sorotan. Salah satunya saat saya mendapat kesempatan untuk mengikuti lokakarya dua minggu bersama Introdans dari Belanda pada tahun 2014, dan di hari terakhir kami mengadakan pertunjukan bersama. Pengalaman itu cukup baru bagi saya saat itu. Saya sangat senang terpilih mewakili Nalitari dalam kolaborasi ini. Landasan tari di Indonesia adalah tradisional, tetapi landasan tari di Introdans adalah balet. Saya terkejut. Semua peserta lokakarya belajar sedikit tentang bentuk tarian masing-masing, dan setelah itu kami membuat tarian kolaboratif yang bisa dilakukan semua orang. Kami tidak dipaksa untuk menguasai apa pun, tetapi menggunakan pengetahuan untuk mengeksplorasi apa yang bisa kami lakukan. Temanya adalah “Obah!” atau bergerak.

Suatu ketika, Nalitari tampil di tengah kota Yogyakarta saat hujan deras. Saat itu sangat dingin dan gigi saya bergemeletuk, tapi tidak apa-apa. Tak satu pun dari kami yang ingin batal. Kami terus menari di tengah hujan.

Satu tarian di Nalitari yang sangat saya sukai berjudul ‘Kalang’. Tarian tersebut mewakili lingkaran kehidupan dari lahir sampai mati. Kami mengeksplorasi gerakan dengan tema tersebut.

Bagaimana Anda menjelaskan latihan tari Anda saat ini?

Di Nalitari, metode pengajaran dan praktik disesuaikan dengan penyandang disabilitas. Setiap gerakan yang dapat kami lakukan, itulah yang kami lakukan saat menari. Saat latihan, kami tidak membuat perbedaan antara orang dengan dan tanpa disabilitas. Semua gerakan bergantung pada interpretasi.

Begitu kita masuk ke sebuah repertoar, kita memahami tema tarian itu sehingga penari bisa belajar bagaimana mengekspresikannya. Setelah itu, ada bagian tari di mana penari bisa mengeksplorasi ide sendiri dan bagian yang ada pedoman geraknya, namun tidak harus terlihat sama.

Kami berlatih dua kali sebulan bersama semua anggota Nalitari, tetapi jika ada pertunjukan yang akan datang, kami menambahkan lebih banyak latihan. Ada sekitar 30 orang yang bergabung di Nalitari.

Selama pandemi, kami belum pernah berlatih. Saya belum bisa bertemu teman-teman saya, tapi saya berlatih di rumah.

Ketika Anda memberi tahu orang-orang bahwa Anda adalah seorang penari, reaksi apa yang paling umum Anda terima?                                                                                                                                                                            

Pertama, mereka terkejut. Terkadang mereka akan memberi pertanyaan seperti, “Bagaimana bisa?” atau “Jenis tarian apa yang kamu lakukan?” Lalu saya menjawab dengan mengatakan bahwa saya menggerakan bagian tubuh yang bisa saya gerakkan. Saya selalu meluangkan waktu untuk menjelaskan.

Saat berkolaborasi dengan non-disabilitas, selalu ada tantangan. Pada awalnya, mereka mungkin merasa takut untuk mendekat atau bersikap canggung. Namun seiring berjalannya waktu, orang-orang menyesuaikan diri dan secara otomatis merasa lebih mudah untuk mendekat atau berkomunikasi. Kami membangun pemahaman satu sama lain.

Di Indonesia, tari inklusif mulai banyak terjadi, tetapi tidak umum. Terkadang organisasi tari lain mengundang penyandang disabilitas untuk berpartisipasi dalam lokakarya, tetapi mereka tidak seperti Nalitari. Kami menari secara inklusif sepanjang waktu.

Bagaimana cara orang mendiskusikan tari berkenaan dengan disabilitas yang menurut Anda membawa implikasi atau asumsi problematis?

Seringkali, komentar dari orang-orang yang datang untuk melihat penampilan kami positif dan membesarkan hati. Mereka ingin belajar dan melihat lebih banyak. Mereka ingin tahu bagaimana kita berlatih.

Meski demikian, konsep tari inklusif tidak umum di Indonesia. Saat kami tampil, orang-orang melihat kami sebagai organisasi penyandang disabilitas, dan cara mereka menulis tentang kami adalah bahwa kami luar biasa dan hebat hanya karena kami bekerja dengan penyandang disabilitas. Komentar yang diberikan tidak pernah tentang keseniannya. Selain itu, penari non-disabilitas disebut-sebut sebagai pendukung bagi para penari difabel, padahal sebenarnya ini merupakan kolaborasi. Kami bekerja sama berdampingan. Kami saling mendukung.

Impian saya adalah agar semua teman penyandang disabilitas suatu hari dapat mengakses tari, dan penampilan kami memiliki kualitas yang cukup baik untuk ditampilkan. Saya tidak ingin orang datang ke pertunjukan kami karena mereka merasa kasihan, tetapi karena kualitas tariannya bagus.

Apakah Anda merasa sudah ada kesempatan pelatihan yang memadai untuk penari penyandang disabilitas? Jika tidak, bidang apa yang secara khusus ingin Anda lihat ditingkatkan?

Belum, tapi kalau ada yang mau melakukan itu, kenapa tidak?

Ada juga batasan bagi penyandang disabilitas untuk mengakses bentuk tarian tradisional, tetapi di Nalitari, kami tidak memiliki batasan itu karena kami lakukan kontemporer. Tarian tradisional sangat kental di sini, khususnya di Yogyakarta. Kami memiliki standar yang sangat ketat. Bahkan orang yang bukan penyandang disabilitas tidak dapat melakukan tarian tradisional tertentu karena bentuk tubuhnya. Ini adalah budaya yang sangat ketat. Jika Anda melakukan tarian tradisional, Anda disebut “penari”.

Bagi penyandang disabilitas untuk mengikuti semua kaidah tari tradisional sangatlah sulit, namun jika institusi atau perguruan tinggi mulai memahami bahwa masyarakat memiliki keunikannya sendiri, maka mungkin suatu saat akan berubah.

Di sini, kami memiliki sekolah khusus tempat semua anak penyandang disabilitas bersekolah. Kami menyebutnya Sekolah Luar Biasa. Setiap daerah di Indonesia memiliki setidaknya satu. Pelatihan menari akan sangat bagus apabila dilakukan di sekolah-sekolah itu. Mereka terkadang menawarkan kelas tari saat ada kompetisi atau pertunjukan yang akan datang, tetapi itu tidak rutin.

Nalitari sendiri mengadakan pertunjukan tahunan, dan biasanya kami mengundang para guru dan siswa dari Sekolah Luar Biasa untuk mengikuti lokakarya bersama kami. Saya salah satu mentor untuk lokakarya tersebut.

Apakah Anda ingin melihat disabilitas dalam tari berasimilasi dengan kesenian tari arus utama?

Kami sudah melakukan asimilasi tersebut di Nalitari, karena non-disabilitas dan disabilitas menari bersama. Di luar Nalitari, salah satu kerabat saya adalah seorang penari dan tertarik untuk menari bersama saya. Terlepas dari pihak disabilitas, sudah ada kemauan itu. Tapi sampai saat ini, itu hanya kemauan, bukan tindakan. Saya yakin di masa depan akan ada aksi, tapi mungkin tidak dalam waktu dekat.

Selain itu, tantangannya juga ada pada panggung atau tempat pertunjukan, yang terlalu tinggi atau tidak ada tanjakan. Sebagai pengguna kursi roda, terkadang saya merepotkan orang yang harus menggendong saya dan kursi roda saya.

Apa istilah yang Anda pilih untuk bidang yang Anda tekuni ini?

Di Yogyakarta, kami menggunakan “tarian inklusif”. Tapi kami masih memiliki orang yang berpikir “inklusif” hanya berarti diperuntukan untuk penyandang disabilitas. Mereka juga menganggap itu artinya kami hanya memasukkan satu jenis disabilitas, seperti tuli. Untuk menjadi benar-benar inklusif, itu harus lebih dari itu. Itu harus berarti semua orang. Nalitari beranggotakan penyandang disabilitas fisik, down syndrome, tuli, autisme, dan cerebral palsy. Kami belum pernah bekerja dengan penyandang tuna netra dan orang dengan disabilitas psikososial. Tetapi jika mereka ingin bergabung, mereka dipersilakan.

Menurut Anda, apakah bidang ini akan berkembang seiring waktu?

Banyak penyandang disabilitas mulai tampil dan suara mereka didengar. Ini terlihat jelas dari jumlah undangan yang diterima Nalitari. Ketika Nalitari mulai, sebagian besar undangan tampil hanya berasal dari institusi yang berfokus pada penyandang disabilitas. Sekarang, institusi non-disabilitas mulai mengundang kami. Nalitari diundang untuk tampil di festival tari arus utama beberapa tahun lalu yang merupakan kolaborasi antara Indonesia, Jepang, dan Korea. Kami adalah satu-satunya kelompok tari inklusif yang tampil. Merupakan kehormatan besar bagi kami untuk membawa tarian inklusif ke panggung internasional.

Impian saya adalah agar teman-teman saya menyandang disabilitas dapat mengakses semua jenis tarian dan kami dapat diterima apa adanya.

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