Inclusive Dance

Katy Dymoke is a dancer, dance teacher, dance-movement psychotherapist, dance film maker, working with all ages and abilities, infants to elderly. Katy makes dance films, writes books and walks in nature.

• List of FiguresAbbreviationsPrefaceAcknowledgementsIntroduction- An ethno-historical overview of the origins of Touchdown Dance: A radical initiative in a radical climate- Part 1. Taking a stand for inclusivity in an exclusive society - Part 2. The body as the locus of liberation- Part 3. Bringing CI and Touchdown Dance to Denmark1. Returning to the Origins: The Journey Taken by the Founders- Part 1. A chance encounter – Where it all started- The first years of Touchdown Dance 1986–88 – Finding a common way of seeing using CI- Bringing visually impaired and sighted people together through CI- The first encounter – A mini revolution- Part 2. Touchdown Dance (1988–94), Breaking new ground, new discourses, new science, new praxis: Re-inhabiting the body brought into question the perception of the visible and invisible- Part 3. Finding my place2. Methodology: Undertaking Research That Is Practice-Led- Contact Improvisation – Sowing the seeds of self-determination through touch and movement- CI – A practice-led approach to learning- Part 1. CI – The inter-relationship of pedagogy and practice-led research – The advent of an integrated and inclusive approach- Part 2. The foundational principles in practice - Vignette 1: An integrated exchange and inter-corporeal event – The three reciprocal membranes- Vignette 2: Touch – On the gap between physical and verbal language – The motile membrane between states of consciousness- Part 3. The role of discursive, ethnographic methods3. Touch Communication: The Reciprocal Membrane of Inclusion- Part 1. Touching the skin is touching the membrane of the inner body- Part 2. In search of a natural attitude towards touch4. The Pedagogic Process in Practice- Part 1. Introduction- Working with movement – A path towards change- CI – A sphere for cultural motility and mutability- The transitional state – New ways of seeing, moving and being- Part 2. The different modality-specific methods- Modality 1: The lower six inches- Modality 2: Rolling- Modality 3: Back-to-back sitting- Modality 4: Stand on ‘all fours’ – The low ‘bridge’ or ‘table’- Modality 5: Lifts – Pathways into space and back to the floor5. Workshops: Our Partnerships and Projects Since 1994- Children- Youth work- How would you rate your movement skills before and after the workshop?- Adults6. Performance and Creative Process- Sixth Sense – Second Sight: Practice-based research – In performance- Productions post 1994- I-radiate – 1999–2000- SENSE-8 2000–01- TACT 2002–03- CLOSER. Created 2005–08 reworked as APPARENTLY NORMAL 2010–12- Follow the frame- 343 m/s – The speed of sound- 343 m/s Lisbon7. Final Words- The paradigm shift – Towards the individual and collective – Embracing the membrane of inclusion- The research accomplishments and the return of non-touch - Capturing the experience – The multiple membranes 8. Three Touchdown Dance Artists’ Points of View- Introduction- Holly Thomas – Dancer and facilitator- Sharing practice- Performance work- Robert Anderson – Dancer and facilitator- Jamus Wood – Dancer and facilitatorAfterword – Steve PaxtonAppendix 1. The Small Dance 329Appendix 2. The ‘Hatching Chick’ – And the ‘birth’ of the Membrane ConceptTimelineNotesBibliography

'Inclusive Dance reinforces a critical argument made by many CI (Contact Improvisation) practitioners and performers: that touch is imperative. Dymoke further bolsters this point by stating that touch is a necessary access technology for blind and visually impaired people and is a device that enlivens our social capacity for intentional inclusion and relational encounters. Dymoke offers a generous input to the field of disability dance, where disabled voices remain under-represented and pedagogies and instructional methods require varying and updated contributions.'