was to establish a creative The disability culture model faced the kind of marginalisation disability into a situation more space, in which having an recognises that professional that the company seeks to usually experienced by the intellectual artists or community arts redress on behalf of people with dancers with a disability. More disability was advantageous participants with a disability a disability. interestingly though, the idea and in which young people need to have their art challenged the assumption I now feel that successful with an viewed as art in its own right that a young person with a Integrated Dance work depends and not just as disabled art. disability would necessarily on providing separate talk space In fact the intellectual disability, with want to be more by ‘normal’ for the dancers with and without work had to benchmarking their way of their intuition, idiosyncratic company’s a disability to articulate their own achieve a certain amount of creativity and highly dealing with the dance perspective, particularly if the critical workshop against the individual dance languages, distinction between the roles responses of the people could excel. of dancers with and without acclaim from audiences, arts without a disability, or to play a disability is not marked with Our thinking started to shift in down the colleagues and funding an exciting way when one of bodies in order to have the qualities and style that they the dancers with a disability payment or other indicators. have appropriate credibility to began to talk about cultures The dancers without a because of their disabilities. pursue the thought process of of disability. This was disability are now invited to cultures of disability. Reverse integration as our articulated in terms of unique meet regularly in a separate ways of speaking and working methodology did not Another major shift was the group to air everything from disregard the drive in every thinking. These wonderful realisation that the emphasis practical ways concepts freed up the thinking of supporting the dancers with person to fit in and be on the performers with a accepted, nor did it ignore the behind the work disability risked alienating the a disability to in-depth to become far more complex performers without a disability, discussions about the emotional and practical challenges faced than the earlier notion of whose involvement in the aesthetic and ways company’s by young people with an reverse integration. It is company has always been a of maintaining our intellectual disability in other dynamic and positive, rather key aspect of the ethos. company’s spheres of than defining itself in terms of success. Ironically, the An exciting development what it is not. their lives. Its main focus dancers without a disability scheduled for the youth
disability into a situation more usually experienced by the dancers with a disability. More interestingly though, the idea challenged the assumption that a young person with a disability would necessarily want to be more ‘normal’ by benchmarking their way of dealing with the dance workshop against the responses of the people without a disability, or to play down the qualities and style that they have because of their disabilities. Reverse integration as our working methodology did not disregard the drive in every person to fit in and be accepted, nor did it ignore the emotional and practical challenges faced by young people with an intellectual disability in other spheres of their lives. Its main focus was to establish a creative space, in which having an intellectual disability was advantageous and in which young people with an intellectual disability, with their intuition, idiosyncratic creativity and highly individual dance languages, could excel. Our thinking started to shift in an exciting way when one of the dancers with a disability began to talk about cultures of disability. This was articulated in terms of unique ways of speaking and thinking. These wonderful concepts freed up the thinking behind the work to become far more complex than the earlier notion of reverse integration. It is dynamic and positive, rather than defining itself in terms of what it is not. The disability culture model recognises that professional artists or community arts participants with a disability need to have their art viewed as art in its own right and not just as disabled art. In fact the company’s work had to achieve a certain amount of critical acclaim from audiences, arts colleagues and funding bodies in order to have the appropriate credibility to pursue the thought process of cultures of disability. Another major shift was the realisation that the emphasis on the performers with a disability risked alienating the performers without a disability, whose involvement in the company has always been a key aspect of the company’s success. Ironically, the dancers without a disability faced the kind of marginalisation that the company seeks to redress on behalf of people with a disability. I now feel that successful Integrated Dance work depends on providing separate talk space for the dancers with and without a disability to articulate their own perspective, particularly if the distinction between the roles of dancers with and without a disability is not marked with payment or other indicators. The dancers without a disability are now invited to meet regularly in a separate group to air everything from practical ways of supporting the dancers with a disability to in-depth discussions about the company’s aesthetic and ways of maintaining our ethos. An exciting development scheduled for the youth
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