Full Radius Dance: Dancers With and Without Disabilities Performing Together

There are only a few professional dance companies in the United States that are physically integrated. One of those companies is Full Radius Dance in Atlanta, Georgia.

Douglas Scott, Artistic and Executive Director of Full Radius Dance, took an interest in integrated dance during the early 90's.

He had attended a two-day workshop sponsored by VSA arts of Georgia (VSA), which focused on arts programs for people who were incarcerated, seniors, developmentally disabled and physically disabled. Mary Verdi-Fletcher, President and Founding Artistic Director of The Dancing Wheels Company & School from Cleveland, Ohio, was leading a class on working with dancers with and without disabilities. Fletcher is widely recognized as the first professional wheelchair dancer in the United States.

"I was intrigued. Here were dancers that moved very differently from the way I moved," Scott explained.

Through VSA, Scott started teaching classes in Atlanta and in 1995, formed Full Radius Dance.

"We began by performing at a festival in Atlanta and the response was positive, and we haven't looked back since. Through the years, I've had about ten dancers who use wheelchairs, with some staying for six years and then moving on to other adventures." Scott explained. "Currently, we have two dancers who use wheelchairs, plus two apprentices: One is a young woman who has multiple sclerosis and the other is a young man who is hearing impaired. Plus four dancers without disabilities. Everybody trains at the same time. There are adaptations made for particular body types, but no one sits out as we're fully integrated."

Scott recognizes that dancers in wheelchairs gain the same things as their able-bodied counterparts through dance.

"Wheelchair users don't use their bodies to their fullest capabilities. While they're tentative at first, by the end of their first session, they're removing their side guards that restrict movement. We spend two hours in class and approximately nine hours a week training and rehearsing. Everybody ends up in good shape. We do movements that require a lot of trust. Sometimes dancers in wheelchairs are afraid of hurting me and they're shy in the beginning. The environment changes, we trust each other, and the kid gloves come off," Scott said. "This is not therapy. There are misconceptions about it being therapy, but we are a professional dance company."

In fact, there are other professional physically integrated dance companies around the nation. Some of the leading companies include Dancing Wheels Company & School, Cleveland, Ohio; Light Motion, Seattle, Washington; Axis Dance Company, Oakland, California; Karen Peterson and Dancers in Miami, Florida; and Infinity Dance, New York City, New York.

"It's somewhat of a hard sell because we do modern dance, not ballet that has a long history and is a more common dance form. There's a resistance from the public to come see us sometimes, because some say 'I didn't want to be go and be depressed.' But, they have to see it in order to understand it because it's a visual art form," Scott said.

"I'd like to see physically integrated dance become mainstream in America and for us to be accepted as just a dance company. Everyone should simply be accepted for who they are. When you say physically integrated dance, it's only a description, but some view it as a label. We're a professional company."

Scott began his interest in non-traditional dance movement by studying trapeze work, Spanish web, and the circus arts.

"I continue to look for other ways of exploring physicality. Everything is so precise in ballet, but with non-traditional dancers, I've become a better choreographer and better teacher because I teach to the person. It's more about the movement. It's much more personal and a collaborative atmosphere," Scott explained. "In the disabled community, the majority of the people with disabilities love the fact that we do sometimes do pieces with everyone in wheelchairs, regardless of ability, with the wheelchair becoming the prop. Other times, we make the wheelchair disappear into the performance and audiences concentrate on the dance, not the apparatus."

Of course, there are frustrations that come with the territory.

"One of our dancers is often told it doesn't look like she's disabled and she doesn't need the chair. The perception is that users of wheelchairs are weaker than they sometimes are. Another one of our dancers used a power chair because of post polio. She'd do a forward roll over my body and people thought she didn't need the chair." Scott said.

"The majority of our funding is through earned income. Thankfully some of our funding is also through the Arts Councils in Atlanta, in Fulton County, and from the state Georgia. We perform for corporations, such as an upcoming performance for the Home Depot Corporate office. We also perform in schools with 30 to 40 minute shows. We've become advocates for persons with disabilities by default. It's not our emphasis, but a side benefit."

Scott also stresses that the company participates in community service and outreach to new patients who are facing a disability.

"We also work in the community with a brain injury and spinal rehab center, The Shepherd Center. We get them comfortable with their chairs through a dance workshop. Their partners or spouses are there and we teach them how to dance together. We also work with the Center for the Visually Impaired and teach movements to adults and children. It's different because you have to use your verbal skills as a teacher. I've become very aware of how different people learn," Scott said. "And, it's made me into a better choreographer, because I teach and choreograph for the individual dancers instead of strictly adhering to an overriding vision or concept. As a result, our performances are very personal and satisfying."

For more information on Full Radius Dance visit www.FullRadiusDance.org.

Pictured left to right: JoJo Butler, Laurel Lawson & Douglas Scott - Photo by Ann Lang