You Should Be Dancing

I went to a unique dance performance tonight by the Asher Dance Electric dance company.  A little about the company:

"Asher Dance Eclectic” is comprised of able-bodied dancers as well as those in wheelchairs due to spina bifida, spinal cord injuries, cerebral palsy, etc. There exist very few dance companies like it in the U.S.  The Cleveland Ballet Company has had tremendous success with its “Dancing Wheels” group which was founded in 1980 by Mary Verdi-Fletcher – born with spina bifida. Similarly, “Asher Dance Eclectic” will provide audiences with its alluring, visually exciting performances incorporating the talents of both populations through jazz and modern choreography. By enabling audiences to develop new and dynamic images of physically challenged individuals, we will be able to appreciate the abilities people have, as opposed to the disabilities.

We have a teacher’s aid at school who is a member of the Asher Dance Electric.  She uses an electric wheel chair and has both cerebral palsy and spina bifida.  She is a waifish little blonde with a big smile and an even bigger heart.  She works with our Autistic student as his one-on-one aid.  She and some of the members of the company had visited the school and given a performance for a group of students.  I really enjoyed it and so she made sure I knew when they had a performance.  So I made it a point to attend the performance!

They did 7 numbers.  I REALLY enjoyed 6 of those numbers.  1 number I just didn’t get.  Didn’t understand it.  Wondered what meds the choreographer had been on at the time this dance was birthed.  It was bad.  I didn’t like it, OK?

That bit of negativism aside…the other 90% of the show was amazing!  All the numbers integrated dancers with and without wheelchairs beautifully.  It was seamless.  It’s hard to describe, unless you see it, I think.  Honestly, though, the chairs were NOT the first thing you noticed in the numbers.  You noticed the costumes and the dance moves and the faces of the dancers… but not the wheel chairs.  You noticed that these dancers were different sizes and shapes and that the costumes were very simple yet very effective.  You noticed the lighting and the musical variety.  AFTER you took in all that….you noticed that some of the dancers were not walking, but wheeling!

I was a little bit hesitatnt about going.  I was a little tired and not sure how many numbers there would be or if they would be good or awful (although I doubted anything would go as far as awful…) but I am SO glad I went.  Stephanie, my dancing friend, saw me in the audience after the show was over and the lights came up.  She waved and thanked me for coming.  I was SO glad I had gone.  The audience was small…they had performed well…and Stephanie knew I supported her.  Sometimes just a little reminder that people are good and they care is all you need to brighten your day………..Just like all the wonderful notes my diary friends left me on my previous entry. 

 *SMOOCHES* to all…and keep on Dancing!