Anyone who has danced for an extended number of years has heard the age-old mantra about ballet: that it is the “foundation of all dance.” Youngsters that have complained to their dance teachers about their disinterest in ballet have had this drilled into them. The idea that ballet is crucially supplemental to other dance genres is common knowledge to dancers around the world. It is information that is rarely questioned or scrutinized. But if we study the origins of ballet, we can see that it perhaps isn’t as universalized as it’s thought to be. The benefits of ballet technique cannot and should not be divorced from its problematic founding ideals that still influence dancers today.
Read MoreFor an artform with a long history of exclusivity, accessibility can be a difficult topic for many dance studios. Counter to traditions of gatekeeping, elitist training, and a hyper fixation on perfection, local studio Issaquah Dance Theater (IDT) offers a dance class tailored for neurodivergent and physically disabled students. The Best of My Abilities (BOMA) is an inclusive dance program founded by dancer and paraeducator, Emmy Fansler.
Read MoreEarlier this month, I had the amazing opportunity to sit down and chat with Lisa Fairman, founder of Girl Power Sport. They are a local gymnastics, dance, and activewear brand based in Vancouver, Washington with most of their materials sourced from Portland, Oregon. When asked about how her brand started, it was clear Lisa has been surrounded by the arts and sports community for a very long time.
Read MoreI was invited to write blog articles for Dancewear Center earlier this year because I wanted to share with the dance community as a whole what the words disability and mental illness really mean, and why they’re important to me. I want to break down stereotypes around disability and mental illness piece by piece and give my perspective about disability in relation to the dance world.
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