‘Lived Fiction’ – First sharing of Inclusive Contemporary Dance Choreography within the DANCING Project 

Social Lives 

Authors: Ann Leahy, Post-doctoral Researcher, and Delia Ferri, Professor of Law, ERC Project DANCING, Assisting Living and Learning (ALL) Institute, School of Law and Criminology, Maynooth University

Logo of DANCING: Researching Disability and Diversity in Culture
DANCING: Researching Disability and Diversity in Culture

The Project “Protecting the Right to Culture of Persons with Disabilities and Enhancing Cultural Diversity through European Union Law: Exploring New Paths (DANCING)”, based at the ALL Institute, reached an important milestone at the end of February 2023. The initial work on an inclusive and accessible piece of contemporary dance created by Lucy Bennett and Stopgap Dance Company for DANCING was performed in Dublin in front of an invited audience. The work will be fully ready next year, and we are already looking forward to the world premiere in Dublin in early 2024.  

The image shows Stopgap Dance company during the choreography. The image shows dancers from different ethnical backgrounds some of whom on a wheelchair.

On 24th February 2023, Stopgap shared their work-in-progress in a pre-staging fashion, and without costumes or lighting at DanceHouse in a dedicated event organised in collaboration with Dance Ireland.  ‘Lived Fiction’ – the title of the work being created by Lucy Bennett and collaborators from Stopgap – is an original piece of choreography that is performed by a group of disabled and non-disabled dancers and endeavours to be accessible to all. Stopgap’s devising process is based on key inclusive methods that the company has collectively developed and is a living example of how society should and could be, valuing the richness that comes from diversity. Experimenting and working on accessibility for both dancers and audience allows for a deep understanding of what accessibility really means. However, this choreographic work is also meant to be a “tool for change” by raising awareness on inclusive cultural participation.  

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