Page 18 - Community Living Magazine 34-3

cUlTUrE – DANcE cUlTUrE - DANcE
A DrEAm comES TrUE She attended mainstream school, as a disabled person but as an artist. dancers. She is in the right place for
this. Stopgap Dance, who bring
It is interesting that her starting point
rather than special school and it was
for HANNAH this that gave her the GCSE in dance is her own judgement of herself, rather together exceptionally talented
than other people’s. It is perhaps this
that took her to college and a dance
disabled and non-disabled dancers,
diploma. And when the chance of self-belief that has challenged the have an excellent track record in
Hannah Sampson dreamed of being a full-time dancer from when work-experience came up at Surrey- perceptions of others and brought her producing stunning dance
she first started ballet classes aged five. Now 22, she’s made it. based Stopgap Dance Company she to the point she has reached today. choreography. The learning
But it hasn’t always been that easy she told Simon Jarrett took it, prepared to work her way up disabled, internationally-performed
from the bottom. This led to the It was always her dream to be a choreographer Chris Pavia has also
part-time work, then the full-time job, successful, mainstream dancer and she emerged from the Stopgap
and the hard-won status of both talks about her right to pursue her dream. talent stable.
t sounds like a pretty performance tours. Except there’s a lot teacher and performer. Beneath the bubbly, warm generous
I straightforward and more to the story than that. personality lies an iron will that seems To watch Hannah Sampson dance in
untroubled career progression. Meeting Hannah at a Birmingham to propel her through whatever his Awakening is to see a fusion of
Ballet classes from age five, Hannah’s progress to where she is conference to promote participation prejudices or setbacks she faces. dance and choreographic talent that
a GCSE in dance at school, today is one in which she has by people with learning disabilities in resists any attempt to place a limit on
a diploma in dance and always had to fight against being the arts, that single-mindedness is When she first taught a class of non- people’s talents or abilities.
musical theatre from Kingston characterised as a dancer with Down’s clear to see. It has always been her disabled dancers, she saw straightaway
College, a part-time job with syndrome, rather than a dancer in her love of dance that has driven her and that it was difficult, in her words, “to get Hannah Sampson, renowned dance
a dance company, and finally own right. This has involved an it is clear that she is on a mission to them on the same page”. She did it by performer, teacher – where will she go
full-time work teaching dance awful lot of determination and get the whole population dancing. simply engaging with them as a dance next? Keep watching.
and performing. single-mindedness from her, and a teacher, sharing her love of dance and
track-record of making the right call at “If you think you can’t dance, try it out”, “If you think you can’t dance, try it her skills, until they saw the value of what Stopgap dance company
Life now involves working with the right time when faced with critical is Hannah’s advice. out”, is her advice to anyone sitting she was giving them. She comments http://stopgapdance.com/
internationally renowned career decisions. She studied ballet nervously on the side lines. Dance casually, “It’s something they learn”. You can see clips from Chris Pavia’s
choreographers such as Charlotte to grade 2 but realised early on that Down’s syndrome were virtually can be fun and a hobby as well as a Awakening, with Hannah Sampson
Vincent of the Vincent Dance Theatre, in a world where only a tiny minority non-existent. Despite her love of ballet, profession. In her own case she has Her next ambition is to choreograph dancing, on YouTube: https://
as well as national and international make it, the chances for a dancer with she switched to contemporary dance. always been keen not to judge herself for both disabled and non-disabled www.youtube.comwatch?v=M9Y5gxZi6so

cUlTUrE – DrAmA
SIbErIA – WHErE Central role of parents and I could only imagine the wonderful a small group of young people.
vocational activities young people
We had the pleasure of working with a
Their enthusiasm and openness to the
pArENTS TAKE THE lEAD number of young people throughout could take part in here. Once again, work was overwhelming and the
it appeared that this had been set up
our stay in Krasnoyarsk as well as
atmosphere electric.
presenting at the conference. What and run by a family of a young boy
In 2015 melissa Daly an education officer struck me most about the education with autism. It would have been great to have had
at the Birmingham Repertory Theatre and system in Siberia was the lack of special more time for conversations with the
Richard Hayhow, Director of the Open Theatre educational provision. As a result of Parent engagement parents who were creating these
Company, travelled to Krasnayorks in Siberia to this, parents had been inspired to play After just a few days in Krasnoyarsk, opportunities and making a real
a central role in creating more suitable
I started to consider how different this was difference for these young people.
share ideas on theatre practice at an international opportunities for their young people. from our set up in the UK. We have a
conference. They discovered a land where, in the much more developed special education I left Siberia inspired at how we had
A highlight of the week was a trip to Social Homestead absence of provided services, parents take the We visited an organisation called system but do we have the same level of managed to share our theatre practice
“Dobraya” where we were welcomed with fantastic hospitality lead. Melissa takes up the story... ‘Open Hearts’ to deliver a drama parent engagement? I wondered how we with so many people despite the fact we
and lots of snow! workshop and it was wonderful to see could enhance our provision by engaging could not hold a conversation with most
a group of parents working so closely with parents more and encouraging them of them. If we are to continue to
together to engage young people with to take a more active role in the work we create opportunities for young people
I have been working closely with Richard young people I was working with. practice is heavily verbal and often learning disabilities. This project is do with their young people. with learning disabilities we must look
for some time now and was delighted to This sparked my journey to discover a conceptual at its heart. By its very nature fantastic but it was quite disconcerting outside the work we are doing
go and work with him at an international new way of working which could it tends to exclude young people with that only a small number of schools The conference itself was very individually and share our practice as
conference in Krasnayorsk in Siberia. engage these young people. learning disabilities who rely on and young people would benefit from informative and it was encouraging to widely as possible. Krasnoyarsk is a
non-verbal means of communication. it. I was very surprised that this project hear that the Russian Education Minister beautiful place and we met some
I work as an Education Officer for The For almost two decades, Richard seemed to be driven by the parents is planning a special education system wonderful people I hope to meet
Birmingham Repertory Theatre with a Hayhow has been developing theatre This experimental psycho-physical and not necessarily by the education to enhance the learning and development again one day.
focus on working with young people with with young people and children with actor-training approach has been adapted authorities. This was also apparent after of young people with learning
learning disabilities. This includes learning disabilities, within the education to enable a genuinely collaborative a visit to Raduga Rehabilitation Centre, disabilities in Russia. A highlight was For more information on the
delivering drama sessions in Mayfield sector and beyond. The practice, approach to communicating and making Light of Hope and MumiDom Centre. Richard successfully encouraging 500 Open Hearts Project in Siberia:
Special School with young people who which we have labelled ‘mimetics’, theatre with young people with learning A highlight of the week would have to delegates to take part in a mirroring http://healthprom.org/where-we-work/
have a range of learning disabilties. focuses upon non-verbal, physical action disabilities. Having been trained by be our trip to Social Homestead exercise as we presented our work – russian-federation/
After six months in the school, I started and interaction as the heart of all human Richard in this practice, this trip to Siberia “Dobraya” where we were welcomed a wonderful moment! For Open Theatre Company see http://
to feel slightly out of my depth and was communication and the leveller across was a once in a lifetime opportunity to with fantastic hospitality and lots of www.opentheatre.co.uk/
concerned that many of the drama differences. Much of the work further develop my skills and to explore snow! The facilities were impressive On our final day we delivered a teacher- Birmingham Rep is at http://www.
activities were not accessible for the undertaken within current theatre the education system in another country. (they even had an outdoor theatre) training session for around 40 adults and birmingham-rep.co.uk/

16 Vol 29 No 4 | Summer 2016 Community Living www.cl-initiatives.co.uk www.cl-initiatives.co.uk Community Living Vol 29 No 4 | Summer 2016 17