Beyond barriers

The most recent Arts Council England (ACE) data from 2023 indicates only 7% of the dance workforce identifies as disabled. Of these, 6% of artists, 8% of dance boards and 9% of dance managers identified as disabled. Given that 22% of England’s population identifies as disabled, it suggests representation in dance is poor across a range of roles, including leadership positions.

The working group

In 2023, a consortium of leading dance organisations – Candoco Dance Company, Corali, People Dancing, Stopgap Dance Company and TIN Arts – formed a working group to address this lack of representation and employment opportunities for disabled dance artists – including D/deaf, disabled, neurodivergent, blind and visually impaired, learning-disabled and chronically ill individuals.

The group developed a research programme, funded by ACE, called Barriers to Progression and Employment in Dance for Disabled People, which we, as researchers, were appointed to in 2024.

Who was involved and how?

Disabled dance artists, leaders and students were invited to be interviewed about their experiences of training and working in dance. Disabled and non-disabled people who worked for National Portfolio Organisations (NPOs) and disabled-led companies were also invited to participate.

In total, 56 people took part in either an interview or focus group – identifying as male, female, agender, genderqueer and/or non-binary, representing most areas of the UK. Over a quarter (27%) were from Global Majority backgrounds. Four participants were students or recent graduates, 28 were disabled dance artists with varying forms of experience including leadership, 13 were from disabled-led dance organisations and 11 were from NPO organisations.

Participants chose either an individual interview or a focus group (group interview), and whether this was held in-person or online. They were invited to share their access needs with the research team in advance. Support workers, BSL interpreters, parents and caregivers were present during some of the interviews. All documentation was sent in a variety of accessible ways: easy-read, BSL, SSE Interpretation, slow timed, audio-described and closed question versions.

During the focus groups and interviews, participants were asked a series of questions about their experiences in the dance sector. This was followed up with an online survey to all NPOs to find out about how they supported disabled dance artists and leaders, the barriers they encountered in doing so, and the types of support they needed. Of 75 dance NPOs in England, 45 responded.

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Chicago, 11 Million Reasons to Dance, commissioned by People Dancing. Photo: Sean Goldthorpe

Summary of findings: the seven Cs

Following data analysis, participants’ experiences were synthesised into seven Cs: competition, chance, cost, community, care, confidence and culture. Each C comprises specific barriers to progression and employment, as well as mitigating factors.

• Competition

Funding and opportunities are so scarce in dance that small and large organisations and disabled and non-disabled dancers are in unfair competition with each other. Inaccessible auditions create further barriers for emerging artists. There is a hierarchy of disability, whereby dance artists with learning disabilities often face more barriers.

• Chance

Career development for disabled dance artists is affected by chance meetings with champions and mentors. While these relationships are crucial, supportive and inspiring, those who do not have them struggle to find pathways into the sector. Geographical location also determines training and development; most opportunity is in London and the south of England. These factors fall outside artists’ control but often dictate career pathways.

• Cost

Disabled dance artists incur health, time and financial costs in their careers.  And leaders, in particular, are at risk of burnout. The dance sector does not understand the time required – ‘crip’ time, rest and recovery time, processing time and time for travel and medical appointments. These are rarely factored into project timelines. There is an added emotional cost when disabled dance artists must keep telling employers and colleagues about their access needs.

• Community

Disabled dance artists create communities for support and solidarity. There is power in partnerships when organisations embed themselves in local communities and collaborate with local disabled artists. But the infrastructure to support disabled dance artists to progress out of disability-specific and/or local organisations is lacking.

• Care

Care is evident when organisations are creatively forward thinking, honest, flexible, kind and willing to listen, learn and reflect. But many organisations have a poor understanding of access which leaves disabled dance artists feeling undervalued.

• Confidence

Disabled dance artists do not always feel confident in articulating their needs. They might hide their disabilities to secure work or feel they are hired as part of a box ticking move. Some organisations hesitate to provide accessible dance opportunities for fear of appearing tokenistic or making mistakes.

• Culture

Dance operates within ableist structures and working practices which do not support disabled dance artists’ needs. Representation is often poor, particularly for individuals with intersectional identities, and can be limited to community and engagement work.

Conclusions

Our research has uncovered multiple barriers to sustainable careers for disabled dance artists and leaders. By acting on the findings, the dance sector can collectively commit to action, building a dance culture that removes barriers and values disabled dance artists financially, culturally and artistically.

For more information, visit: http://www.beyondbarriersindance.info/