As a dancer it is essential to keep pushing yourself to improve your technique and explore other styles of dance.
Develop your dance skills by attending training courses. A huge variety of courses run across Wales and beyond, some of which are specifically designed to be inclusive. Do some research to find out what's best for you, and remember that training providers have a duty to ensure that your access requirements are met, so be clear and be assertive. A good option might be Community Dance Wales' Steps in Time workshops.
For help with the cost, training grants of between £250 - £2,000 are available from the Arts Council of Wales (ACW). These grants are available to people living in Wales that are over 16 and not in full-time education.
Keep up to date with opportunities by contacting dance companies and organisations and asking to be put on their mailing lists, and reading about auditions in publications like The Stage
Collaborations are also a great way of creating new work. Have you thought of working with other individuals / organisations on a dance or mixed artform project? You may already know some other artists that you could work with to create something new and exciting.
There are a number of grants available from ACW to fund projects, and there are also interest-free loans to assist with your costs. These are available to individuals living in Wales that are over 18 and not in full-time education.
Disabled dancers are creating high-quality, challenging and cutting-edge work across the UK and internationally. You might be interested in contacting some of these companies to find out about workshops or auditions.
Companies such as CandoCo state on their website that they "...push the boundaries of contemporary dance beyond usual expectations and broaden people's perception of what dance is and who can dance."
In Wales, uhhuh dance company are creating interesting work, and on the Welsh border there's Blue Eyed Soul Dance Company, based in Shrewsbury.
Other interesting companies include integrated dance company StopGAP in Surrey, Anjali dance company work with dancers with learning disabilities in England, whilst Common Ground Sign Dance Theatre and Signdance Collective work with Deaf dancers to create a fusion of sign language and dance.
You could also watch "The Cost of Living", an award-winning short film produced by DV8 Physical Theatre, starring incredibly talented disabled dancer David Toole (www.dv8.co.uk).
Siri Wigdel (Senior Dance Officer)
Arts Council of Wales
Bute Place
Cardiff CF10 5AL
Tel: 0845 8734 900
Fax: 029 20441 400
Minicom: 029 2039 0027
Email: siri.wigdel@artswales.org.uk
Web: www.artswales.org
Community Dance Wales
Sbectrwm
Bwlch Road
Fairwater
Cardiff CF5 3EF
Tel: 02920 575075
Fax: 02920 575073
Email: info@communitydancewales.com
Web: www.communitydancewales.com
Potential - Dance and Disabled People e-newsletter published by the Foundation of Community Dance. Full of news and opportunities for disabled dancers. Click here to go to the website, then search for "disabled people" to sign up to the newsletter.
Dance from Wales: Independent Practice was published by Wales Arts International in 2008, and showcases twelve of Wales' best independent dance practitioners (www.wai.org.uk).
Welsh community dance companies:
Community Dance Wales: www.communitydancewales.com
Dawns i Bawb (north west Wales): www.dawnsibawb.org
Dawns TAN Dance (Swansea and Port Talbot): www.tandance.org
Powys Dance: www.powys.gov.uk/index.php?id=4991
Rhondda Cynon Taff Community Arts: www.rctca.org.uk
Rubicon (Cardiff and Newport): www.rubicondance.co.uk
Valley and Vale Community Arts: www.valleyandvale.co.uk
Other Welsh dance companies:
Diversions, The Dance Company of Wales: www.diversionsdance.co.uk
Earthfall (Cardiff based dance and physical theatre company): www.earthfall.org.uk
National Youth Dance Wales (for young people ages 14 - 21): www.nyaw.co.uk/e_nydw.html
North East Wales Dance: www.newdance.org.uk
Welsh Folk Dance Society: www.welshfolkdance.org.uk
Welsh Independent Dance (national organisation for professional dance artists in Wales): www.welshindance.co.uk
Other useful websites:
Arts Council of Wales - includes an arts database of events, details of grants, and useful contacts: www.artswales.org
BBC Blast Dance (great website for young dancers, with lots of career advice): www.bbc.co.uk/blast/dance
The Centre for Performance Research: www.thecpr.org.uk
Council for Dance Education and Training (information on training, including training for disabled dancers): www.cdet.org.uk
Dance UK - the national voice for dance: www.danceuk.org
Disability Arts Online - work by deaf and disabled artists: www.disabilityartsonline.org
Equity - the UK Trade Union representing professional performers and other creative workers: www.equity.org.uk
Theatre Wales - comprehensive theatre and performance website, including news, reviews and opportunities: www.theatre-wales.co.uk
