Wheels of Dance

Wheels. When asked to think of wheels, what is the first thing that comes to mind? They are fairly common in our everyday life. Wheels make cars, buses, and bikes move. We utilize wheels more often than we may take time to think about. Wheels essentially make up nearly every aspect of transportation in our lives. Even planes have wheels on them! And often times, wheels can become a persons only form of movement. According to data from 2016, 3.6 million people over the age of 15 use a wheelchair.

                Now, not to seem off topic here, but dance. When asked to think of dance, what is the first thing that comes to mind? Is it the pretty pink ballet shoes? Or the theatrical make up and hair? Grace and elegance of movements? While there is an unknown precise number of dancers in the United States, it is often a favorite activity than many toddler and youth are placed in to growing up. And while not every single tiny dancer sticks with it, it is still a popular hobby or activity among many, both young and old. 

                Have you ever thought of wheels and dance together? Might seem odd at first right but actually it is beginning to be more common than you think, but remains a challenge in the dance community. The challenge being the idea of creating a more inclusive environment. Dance, for the longest time, has been seen as an art that requires legs, arms, and feet to do. You need to be able to use your legs and feet to be able to dance, but many are beginning to challenge this idea. Starting back in the 1980's, work began to create a more inclusive dance environment. One that allowed space for those with or without disabilities. This movement has led to book publishes that instruct wheelchair dancing, as well as the rise of a consistent set up of available classes. That is one of the biggest challenges this movement faces.

              By changing the exclusivity of the dance community, we can remove the barriers that may hold back disabled individuals in society. Disabled people, because of the stigma that surrounds them and the world they live in, are often times found to be more depressed than someone otherwise not considered disabled. Studies have shown, that by being included in activities and events that would otherwise not accommodate for the disabled, these individuals are found to have decreased levels of depression. By creating more inclusive dance environments, we can limit depression in these disabled individuals by having them more involved.

             It may be easy to argue, how can dance be taught to accommodate disabled persons? How do we change a teaching structure and pedagogy that has been the same since dance maybe begun? Not one, or two, but many dance teachers have managed to create new lesson plans that lead to benefits to those limited to wheelchairs and still wanting to dance. They have not only managed to adapt their lesson plans, but they have also managed to end the dance season with these dancers bound to wheelchairs having learned and achieved the same learning objectives as non-disabled dancers in the same class. So it can be possible and can be done. Kitty Lunn is one example of how the impossible can be possible. Lunn experienced a tragic accident that left her bound to a wheelchair, yet she did not let that disable her from dancing. She found that her biggest barrier was not the physical dancing, but instead the attitude that surrounded her in those dance classes. Long after this experience, she says this discriminatory attitude is still prevalent in classes, and should be something we look to change. Kitty Lunn said, "The worst kind of discrimination ever is someone judging what a person is capable of learning." If we don't limit who can enter a school classroom, why should a learning dance class be seen as any different?

            Today, there are many organizations, groups, and competitions based on wheelchair dancing. So much, that if one choose to begin dancing they could. The only issue that still surrounds them is the lack of inclusivity in dance classes outside of those groups. Just because these bodies are different, does that mean we should keep them segregated away from the standard? Debra Cash once said "If we look at society as being stronger when it incorporates more voices, adding the voice of physically integrated dance to the mix is a good thing." If we can simply add a little change, we could, by Cash's standards, create a stronger society by being more inclusive.

           So, while wheels and dance may not be the first two things one might think to cross and combine, but it is possible and leads to extraordinary outcomes. By doing this we can create a more inclusive dance community and environment, as well as change the ableist mentality that surrounds activities like this. Instead of working against the disabled, we can work alongside them.