Internationally renowned British Dance Company to work together with people with sight and hearing impairments
Celebrated choreographer Wayne McGregor CBE and his company are partnering with national deafblind charity Sense to explore the infinite possibilities of dance as a means of expression for people with sensory impairments.
Starting with a week-long workshop on 28 September, company dancers will work together with people with sight and hearing impairments and their support workers at TouchBase South East, Sense’s day centre in Barnet, to focus on movement and dance practice.
Jasmine Wilson, Director of Creative Learning at Wayne McGregor | Random Dance, said:
“Wayne McGregor | Random Dance are delighted to be entering into a partnership with Sense. Working with multi-sensory impaired participants will be a new experience for us and one that I am sure will inform our creative practice in many exciting ways.”
Participants will experiment with the use of visual, acoustic and kinaesthetic imagery in dance – using touch, objects, music, sound and the surrounding environment to discover their physical and creative potential. Dancers will explore the unconscious perception of movement – also known as proprioception – and how this might be experienced by individuals with a range of sensory impairments.
Kara Jarrold, Head of Arts and Wellbeing at Sense, said:
“We are thrilled to be working with Wayne McGregor | Random Dance. Movement and dance offer a unique opportunity for creative expression for people with dual-sensory loss. Our collaboration will provide a useful insight into the company’s creative methods, resulting in a new set of tools and exercises that can enhance personal and physical development outside these sessions.”
The project is part of Sense’s Arts & Wellbeing programme, which supports deafblind people at all stages of their involvement in the arts and cultural sector.
Find out more
Wayne McGregor | Random Dance is Resident Company of Sadler’s Wells, London. Wayne McGregor is Resident Choreographer of The Royal Ballet, London. He is Professor of Choreography at Trinity Laban Conservatoire of Music and Dance and has an Honorary Doctor of Science degree from Plymouth University. In 2011, he was awarded a CBE (Commander of the Order of the British Empire) for Services to Dance. www.randomdance.org
Sense is a national charity that has supported and campaigned for children and adults who are deafblind for the last 60 years. There are currently 250,000 deafblind people in the UK. www.sense.org.uk
