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Thursday, March 6, 2008 12:06 PM CST
Wheelchairs, prosthetics offer new movements for dance company
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Wheelchairs, prosthetics offer new movements for dance company
By MARY STEGMEIR, Courier Staff Writer
CEDAR FALLS --- Dance involves much more than fancy footwork, but when most people think about the art form they imagine ballerinas pirouetting across a stage.
For the past 20 years, the members of AXIS Dance Company have been working to change that notion. The organization, which includes able-bodied and disabled performers, performs Friday in Cedar Falls.
First and foremost, the company strives to create new and exciting movements by combining the motions of its varied dancers, said Judith Smith, the artistic director. AXIS performances also prompt attendees to evaluate their preconceptions about disabled people.
"Even though we didn't really intend to --- and it's not the main reason we do this work --- there is a social/political implication to what we do," she said. "And I think it really does make people rethink ability."
Smith, who has used a wheelchair for more than 25 years, talks about AXIS, disabilities, and dance.
Pulse: Why does your company include disabled and non-disabled dancers?
Smith: We couldn't do what we do if we didn't have a mix. Because we involve people with and without disabilities, our movement vocabulary is incredibly expanded. Power chairs and manual chairs can do things that people on feet can't do. And somebody who dances with and without prosthetics can move in much different ways. By the same token, if we were just a company of people with disabilities, we would miss out on a whole range of movement that our non-disabled dancers bring.
Pulse: Can you describe some of your dances?
Smith: I really feel that people need to see it to believe it. ... What people end up seeing is the way that we can partner together. Power wheelchairs are very strong, they can carry people, they can drag people, they're fast. Manual chairs are lightweight. You can give them momentum. They can tip, they can turn. Lisa, one of our dancers, dances with and without prosthetics, so the way that she moves on her prosthetics is very different from the way she moves off them. And (the able-bodied dancers) partner with us in ways that are very specific to their size and their bodies."
Pulse: What do you think your company adds to the dance world?
Smith: The kind of dance that we and other companies like us do really defines who is a dancer and who can dance and what dance is. I think it brings dance to a lot of people, and not only disabled people. There are non-disabled people who have been told they could never be a dancer because they were this or that, so this brings dance to a lot of people that otherwise might not experience it.
Pulse: What do you hope audience members take away from your performance?
Smith: A new understanding of dance and of ability. It's not usual to see people with disabilities dancing. And it's not usual to see someone without disabilities collaborating with people with disabilities as equals.
Contact Mary Stegmeir
at (319) 291-1482 or
mary.stegmeir@wcfcourier.com.
For the past 20 years, the members of AXIS Dance Company have been working to change that notion. The organization, which includes able-bodied and disabled performers, performs Friday in Cedar Falls.
First and foremost, the company strives to create new and exciting movements by combining the motions of its varied dancers, said Judith Smith, the artistic director. AXIS performances also prompt attendees to evaluate their preconceptions about disabled people.
"Even though we didn't really intend to --- and it's not the main reason we do this work --- there is a social/political implication to what we do," she said. "And I think it really does make people rethink ability."
Smith, who has used a wheelchair for more than 25 years, talks about AXIS, disabilities, and dance.
Pulse: Why does your company include disabled and non-disabled dancers?
Smith: We couldn't do what we do if we didn't have a mix. Because we involve people with and without disabilities, our movement vocabulary is incredibly expanded. Power chairs and manual chairs can do things that people on feet can't do. And somebody who dances with and without prosthetics can move in much different ways. By the same token, if we were just a company of people with disabilities, we would miss out on a whole range of movement that our non-disabled dancers bring.
Pulse: Can you describe some of your dances?
Smith: I really feel that people need to see it to believe it. ... What people end up seeing is the way that we can partner together. Power wheelchairs are very strong, they can carry people, they can drag people, they're fast. Manual chairs are lightweight. You can give them momentum. They can tip, they can turn. Lisa, one of our dancers, dances with and without prosthetics, so the way that she moves on her prosthetics is very different from the way she moves off them. And (the able-bodied dancers) partner with us in ways that are very specific to their size and their bodies."
Pulse: What do you think your company adds to the dance world?
Smith: The kind of dance that we and other companies like us do really defines who is a dancer and who can dance and what dance is. I think it brings dance to a lot of people, and not only disabled people. There are non-disabled people who have been told they could never be a dancer because they were this or that, so this brings dance to a lot of people that otherwise might not experience it.
Pulse: What do you hope audience members take away from your performance?
Smith: A new understanding of dance and of ability. It's not usual to see people with disabilities dancing. And it's not usual to see someone without disabilities collaborating with people with disabilities as equals.
Contact Mary Stegmeir
at (319) 291-1482 or
mary.stegmeir@wcfcourier.com.
More Stories from Pulse » Coverstory
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DISCLAIMER: The Courier provides our story commenting feature in order to solicit feedback, debate and discussion on topics of local interest. Please keep in mind that civility is a necessary component of productive conversation. All blatantly inflammatory or otherwise inappropriate comments (i.e. vulgarity, marketing, etc.) are subject to rejection and/or removal. Comments will appear if and when they are approved. For a more in-depth explanation of our policy, please see our Rules of the Road. Thanks for reading, and thanks for participating.
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