ISSUE 7.2 | DISABILITY | MARCH 2017

Page 24

goggles and enters an unseen space. One reviewer, Myronny (2016), describes

‘I am deliberating making my

his experiences:

disability part of the movement,

‘I feel an immediate sense of anxiety as

not because I want to make a

my most reliant forms of communication and being connected to others have

statement about disability, but

been removed. I am aware of movement happening around me, but I have no idea

because it is part of my body and

what. I keep reminding myself that I am in a show and am completely safe, and after

therefore part of my dancing.’

what seems like an eternity of waiting (which in reality would have been minutes – I think), a hand takes hold of mine and

Then she squeezed my hand and could feel

leads me away from the comfort of my seat.

her being led away. I was no longer a ‘we’. I walk with confidence and trust in the

Then a stranger’s hand took mine. I had

stranger but the second they release me,

immediate and complete trust in that hand.

I stop dead in my tracks. Suddenly, my

I still don’t know who it was. Or who any of

footsteps are much slower and smaller.

the hands and arms and bodies I felt were,

My hands are outstretched in front of me

but one woman drew a smiley face on my

as I come into contact with numerous

hand and I’m sure we both laughed loudly

other audience members. We touch faces,

because it was finally something we

we hold hands, I feel a wedding ring on

could understand.’

one person, and another has large, coarse

- Aussie Theatre4

hands. I am creating stories for these people I know very little about. There is a

My drive in the choreography was to

sense of timelessness while this is happ-

create experiences that were subjective

ening and it feels like I am in another world.’

and internalised; to allow for accidental

- My About Town3

meetings even though you didn’t know who was touching you. Where you felt

Another reviewer, Peard, A (2016) describes:

out of control, isolated and yearned for human connection. When once you met

‘Unexpectedly scary, especially as we were

someone through touch, you realised that

not sure what was happening around us.

in fact there is a whole language, an entire

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