Everybody, and every body, can dance. 

Fort Wayne Dance Collective will highlight one of their core beliefs, in their annual show, Collective Expressions. In collaboration with Dancing Wheels Company from Cleveland, FWDC will bring a unique and inclusive show to Fort Wayne on Aug. 17-18 at Williams Theatre at Purdue University of Fort Wayne.

Forming partnership

Dancing Wheels was founded by Mary Verdi-Fletcher in 1980 with a mission to make dance accessible for people with all types of ability levels. This aligns closely with FWDC’s core mission to “inspire and empower people of all identities, abilities, and stages of life through movement arts.” The two organizations first worked together in 2023 when FWDC sought out educational opportunities for their staff. 

“Dancing Wheels is a company we originally started working with to provide continuing education courses to some of our on-site and outreach teaching artists,” FWDC Artistic Director Mandie Kolkman said.

“Last summer, we sent an artist to Ohio to work with them. We wanted to replicate that opportunity here in Fort Wayne for more artists, because not everyone can travel. So, when we were setting up teaching opportunities for Dancing Wheels here in Fort Wayne in January 2024, I was thinking that it would be a really unique opportunity to also work with them to set a piece for our annual August show.”

Access to Education, Access to Dance

Education around accessibility and inclusivity in dance is rarely available in Indiana. Equipping teachers and choreographers with the skills to include more types of dancers in their shows is a huge step toward ensuring there is adequate representation of all types of dancers on stage.

“It’s great to have the opportunity to work with other seated dancers,” said Theo Thompson, a member of Dancing Wheels and FWDC’s touring company. “It makes me feel not so different and like I have a sense of community.”

It is rare, especially in the Midwest, to see a show featuring dancers with such a range of physical abilities, which is exactly why FWDC knew this show was important.

“Fort Wayne Dance Collective has an interest and, we believe, a responsibility to be showcasing dancers with disabilities to promote inclusivity and ensure that all individuals see themselves represented in the art,” Kolkman said. “This initiative is demonstrated in our annual programming and is also something that we have been fortunate enough to present in our guest artist residency program that we host each spring.”

An example of this initiative in FWDC’s history is their collaboration with Access Dance Company. Like Dancing Wheels, Access Dance Company is an all-abilities company, and FWDC brought them to Arts United Center in 2016.

“One of my favorite (things about FWDC) is the thoughtfully curated guest artists they bring into Fort Wayne for collaboration,” FWDC board member Danielle Anderson said. “I am especially excited about this year’s collaboration with America’s first physically integrated dance company The Dancing Wheels Company. True to form, FWDC is leading the way in showing our community that intentional integration raises artistic quality.” 

Beyond — and Behind — the Stage

When considering who would help bring such a unique and powerful show together, Kolkman knew Alec Johnson had to be involved. 

“I’ve had the opportunity to work with Alec on several community projects,” she said. “He is really forward-thinking with his art as a musician and artist.”

Kolkman said Johnson, who serves as Fort Wayne’s deputy director of park planning and development, is a particularly progressive thinker about projection mapping on stage. She was confident she wanted to include him as a resource to help navigate the unique opportunities that come with showcasing an all-abilities performing group on stage. 

This show will feature choreography performed by sit-down and stand-up dancers. A sit-down dancer is primarily a dancer who uses a wheelchair for mobility. A stand-up dancer is one who uses legs and are standing upright to dance. A stand-up dancer may or may not have other physical, sensory, or intellectual disabilities. 

Kolkman said she originally wanted to include Johnson’s projection work as a way to facilitate the choreographic process for all dancers involved in the show. 

“I wasn’t sure what the choreographic syllabus would look like for our choreographing artists, who are stand-up dancers, and how that would translate to performers who are sit-down dancers,” she said. “I wanted the ability to have Alec help us with some projections that are going to be affected by the movement that we are doing. These projections will be capturing our movement and therefore giving us a little bit more to work with as a syllabus for the choreography within the show. It was going to be a tool to help the sit-down dancers and the stand-up dancers have one common goal.”

However, as FWDC spent more time rehearsing with Dancing Wheels, Kolkman’s perspective on how the choreographic process would work shifted.  

“When the Dancing Wheels Company came to work with us in January, they taught us choreography that was accessible for sit-down and stand-up dancers, but they also taught us how to teach and set movement for sit-down and stand-up dancers,” Kolkman said. “So, not only were we learning how to do their choreography, but we were also going through a full transformation as artists by being challenged to rethink the way that we create movement and create movement for all.”

‘We Believe’

Of course, “creating movement for all” aligns with FWDC’s mission and is also the theme for this year’s Collective Expressions.

“This show is highlighting the ‘We Believe’ statements of our organization,” Kolkman said. “Not necessarily our basic mission, but some of the beliefs that go along with it.”

“ ‘Dance is for everyone’ is our main belief. We believe that all people should have access to the arts, that movement can change the world, and that dance is for everyone. These are the three messages we are really diving into during this year’s show.”

The choreographic voices from FWDC and Dancing Wheels will be raised in unison to amplify these messages.

“The piece that Dancing Wheels set on us drove the rest of the dialogue for the show,” Kolkman said. “The piece that they started setting on FWDC’s professional company in January was really about shared humanity and access for all.”

What better way to demonstrate shared humanity than to bring two companies together to share the message? 

“This show is really an opportunity for two totally different companies with a similar mission to showcase shared humanity to the Fort Wayne community during this performance,” Kolkman said. “We’re carrying that through-line, which is very tied to our mission and beliefs, through the entire show.”

The lighting, designed by artist Luke Holliger, plus Johnson’s projections will be important in conveying the message.  

“Alec is also helping some of our artists, who are beautiful writers, do an audio mix in which they talk about their pieces,” Kolkman said.

Their original words and unique voices will be mixed with recordings of inspirational quotes said by various celebrities, ranging from Michelle Obama to Taylor Swift. All of these words will tie into the larger theme.  

“This is a show our community should not miss,” Kolkman said. “It goes well beyond just supporting local artists. It’s about enriching the dance community with diverse expressions and innovative approaches. It’s a show that you will not see from any other company locally.”