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EQUALIZER: BRITISH DANCE TROUPE WORKS WITH ARMENIAN IMPAIRED DANCERS
Features | 07.02.13 | 14:31
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter
There are no sounds in their world, only silence, but they dance
selflessly, feeling every beat of music with other senses. This feeling
turns into rhythmic movements, they dance together, communicate with
facial expression, agree with their eyes.
"If someone is physically challenged, it still cannot be an obstacle to
dance...A human being can have any kind of body built, but if he or she
wants to dance, and does it with love, there can be no issues," says
Welly O'Brian, member of Candoco dance troupe visiting Yerevan from the
United Kingdom, and continues her master class with Armenian dancers.
O'Brian is an above knee amputee. She is also an excellent dancer.
With her dance partner Chris Owen she demonstrates the next element.
The British Council has invited them to hold workshops for dancers
with impaired hearing and Mihr dance troupe in Yerevan and Gyumri.
There are also hearing dancers among the workshop participants,
who communicate easily with their challenged colleagues via dance.
Rima Pipoyan, dance instructor at Yerevan State Institute of Theater
and Cinematography, is among the group of Armenian dancers. She
says such projects are a wonderful means to better understand people
with disabilities.
"We prompt, speak and all that through dance moves. We understand
with the help of movements, hands, eyes. As the workshop commenced,
15 minutes later we forgot who among us could hear and who couldn't,
because the atmosphere was so welcoming. In our realities we are
always much more distant from each other, we do not communicate,
and it is through this kind of projects that the complexity of our
society is challenged and can be gradually overcome," says Pipoyan.
The dancers are trying to do the same exercise. Music starts. Bodies
start moving, flexible movements of hands and legs, the artistic play
of glances become words and need no translation...
"They let the other party feel the weight of their body, so that they
understand and get to know the physical capacity of their own bodies,
and it is a great method for deaf and hearing dancers to understand
one another," O'Brian explains.
Narek Tovmasyan, Arts Project Manager at the British Council, says the
dance workshop is part of the council's "Equal Rights for All" program.
"They are surprised how quickly the connection was established between
their and our dancers. Our participants are from different groups -
with both healthy and impaired hearing. We tried to keep that balance
to give them a chance to work and develop the new skills together,"
says Tovmasyan, introducing the project. "Such workshops give hope to
our children, making them realize that even with disabilities they
are no different from those who are not challenged. These people
are marvelous examples and role models in how to overcome complexes
and lead a fulfilling life. This workshop is an effective therapy,
a healing balm for the soul."
Candoco inclusive dance company was founded in 1991 and has people
with disabilities. Candoco's dance performances break the long-formed
ideas about the human body and trough the power of art make people
believe that human capacities are, in fact, unlimited.
Elen Khachatryan, 24, has severely impaired hearing. She has a flexible
body. Elen attentively follows O'Brian's and Owen's movements and
tries to repeat.
"After Armenian dances it was easy for us to adjust to these foreign
moves. Certainly, it was difficult in the beginning, but after warm-up
it got easier, we go used to them. I follow the music," says Elen.
Marianna Poghosyan from the Armenian National Ballet says this workshop
to her is an opportunity for a dialogue with different types of people.
"In our daily life we usually communicate with a limited number of
people from our regular surrounding. Such projects give us a chance
to get to know people we do not often meet and can be useful to. It
is the first time I am dancing with physically challenged people:
it teaches to be more tactful, more considerate. We understand each
other, after all we are human beings, but with different physical
capacities," she says.
The ballet dancer confesses that hearing dancers learn a lot form
the non-hearing ones.
"They are carriers of a whole different world, of other impulses that
often do not reach us because there is a lot of noise around us which
they do not hear, hence their perception is more filtered, purer. I
believe different worlds have to be able to establish a dialogue,
because that is the token of harmony," she says.
Among the dancers from Gyumri there is psychologist Christine
Aghanyan. She says every person is equal in the project, regardless
of their physical capacities and challenges.
"In this freedom people feel at ease to demonstrate their abilities,
discover themselves. The atmosphere is favorable for that, it prompts
you to be free, because nobody is staring at them, hence they abandon
their complexes," says Aghanyan.
The British instructors O'Brian and Owen have traveled to Armenia from
Georgia were they held a similar workshop. They say in both countries
they taught modern dance techniques giving a chance to discover
new ideas and stage their own performances. After the workshop is
completed, in March, the British inclusive dance troupe will perform
in Yerevan.
http://armenianow.com/society/features/43250/candoco_dance_group_british_council_armenia
Features | 07.02.13 | 14:31
NAZIK ARMENAKYAN
ArmeniaNow
By Gayane Lazarian
ArmeniaNow reporter
There are no sounds in their world, only silence, but they dance
selflessly, feeling every beat of music with other senses. This feeling
turns into rhythmic movements, they dance together, communicate with
facial expression, agree with their eyes.
"If someone is physically challenged, it still cannot be an obstacle to
dance...A human being can have any kind of body built, but if he or she
wants to dance, and does it with love, there can be no issues," says
Welly O'Brian, member of Candoco dance troupe visiting Yerevan from the
United Kingdom, and continues her master class with Armenian dancers.
O'Brian is an above knee amputee. She is also an excellent dancer.
With her dance partner Chris Owen she demonstrates the next element.
The British Council has invited them to hold workshops for dancers
with impaired hearing and Mihr dance troupe in Yerevan and Gyumri.
There are also hearing dancers among the workshop participants,
who communicate easily with their challenged colleagues via dance.
Rima Pipoyan, dance instructor at Yerevan State Institute of Theater
and Cinematography, is among the group of Armenian dancers. She
says such projects are a wonderful means to better understand people
with disabilities.
"We prompt, speak and all that through dance moves. We understand
with the help of movements, hands, eyes. As the workshop commenced,
15 minutes later we forgot who among us could hear and who couldn't,
because the atmosphere was so welcoming. In our realities we are
always much more distant from each other, we do not communicate,
and it is through this kind of projects that the complexity of our
society is challenged and can be gradually overcome," says Pipoyan.
The dancers are trying to do the same exercise. Music starts. Bodies
start moving, flexible movements of hands and legs, the artistic play
of glances become words and need no translation...
"They let the other party feel the weight of their body, so that they
understand and get to know the physical capacity of their own bodies,
and it is a great method for deaf and hearing dancers to understand
one another," O'Brian explains.
Narek Tovmasyan, Arts Project Manager at the British Council, says the
dance workshop is part of the council's "Equal Rights for All" program.
"They are surprised how quickly the connection was established between
their and our dancers. Our participants are from different groups -
with both healthy and impaired hearing. We tried to keep that balance
to give them a chance to work and develop the new skills together,"
says Tovmasyan, introducing the project. "Such workshops give hope to
our children, making them realize that even with disabilities they
are no different from those who are not challenged. These people
are marvelous examples and role models in how to overcome complexes
and lead a fulfilling life. This workshop is an effective therapy,
a healing balm for the soul."
Candoco inclusive dance company was founded in 1991 and has people
with disabilities. Candoco's dance performances break the long-formed
ideas about the human body and trough the power of art make people
believe that human capacities are, in fact, unlimited.
Elen Khachatryan, 24, has severely impaired hearing. She has a flexible
body. Elen attentively follows O'Brian's and Owen's movements and
tries to repeat.
"After Armenian dances it was easy for us to adjust to these foreign
moves. Certainly, it was difficult in the beginning, but after warm-up
it got easier, we go used to them. I follow the music," says Elen.
Marianna Poghosyan from the Armenian National Ballet says this workshop
to her is an opportunity for a dialogue with different types of people.
"In our daily life we usually communicate with a limited number of
people from our regular surrounding. Such projects give us a chance
to get to know people we do not often meet and can be useful to. It
is the first time I am dancing with physically challenged people:
it teaches to be more tactful, more considerate. We understand each
other, after all we are human beings, but with different physical
capacities," she says.
The ballet dancer confesses that hearing dancers learn a lot form
the non-hearing ones.
"They are carriers of a whole different world, of other impulses that
often do not reach us because there is a lot of noise around us which
they do not hear, hence their perception is more filtered, purer. I
believe different worlds have to be able to establish a dialogue,
because that is the token of harmony," she says.
Among the dancers from Gyumri there is psychologist Christine
Aghanyan. She says every person is equal in the project, regardless
of their physical capacities and challenges.
"In this freedom people feel at ease to demonstrate their abilities,
discover themselves. The atmosphere is favorable for that, it prompts
you to be free, because nobody is staring at them, hence they abandon
their complexes," says Aghanyan.
The British instructors O'Brian and Owen have traveled to Armenia from
Georgia were they held a similar workshop. They say in both countries
they taught modern dance techniques giving a chance to discover
new ideas and stage their own performances. After the workshop is
completed, in March, the British inclusive dance troupe will perform
in Yerevan.
http://armenianow.com/society/features/43250/candoco_dance_group_british_council_armenia