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Doing things differently
www.penmendonca.com @MendoncaPen
Pepperland and beyond
Date posted: 01 May 2019
Dance artist and writer Kate Swindlehurst reflects upon her experience of the opening night of Mark Morris Dance Group’s UK Pepperland tour and the next day Dance for people living with Parkinson's - Looking ahead: a one-day interactive symposium at Sadler’s Wells, London in March 2019
Read Kate's blog
Friends and a tool belt
Photograph: Theresa Haworth.
Empower, connect and develop
Date posted: 06 March 2019
People Dancing's Summer School 2019 is just around the corner and so we spoke to Community Dance Practitioner and Creative Director of Bodyrox Dance Company, Leah Waterfield about the impact of getting a bursary and taking part last year
Read Leah's blog
Dance for Parkinson's
Rachael James
Dancing for positive shared experience
Date posted: 18 July 2018
Community dance artist Rachael James loves the feeling of freedom that dancing brings and the belief that with the right environment, permission and influences, we can all dance. This is what led her to complete her dance for Parkinson’s training…
Read Rachael's blog
It's the dance of life
Paul Atherton
It’s the dance of life… especially a life with Parkinson’s
Date posted: 18 July 2018
Paul Atherton is a keen dancer. He also lives with Parkinson’s. Paul wanted to blog for us to express just how important dance is in his life… he started well but it wasn’t long before he felt there was something else he should be doing!
Read Paul's blog
Inclusive ballroom
Rashmi Becker, Step Change Studios
Bringing a new vibe to ballroom
Date posted: 08 June 2018
Presented by Step Change Studios, ‘Fusion’, an inclusive ballroom dance showcase with disabled and non-disabled artists, premiered at Sadler’s Wells, in May. Here Rashmi Becker, Step Change Studios producer and founder, blogs for us about dance, diversity, and her drive to push the boundaries of ballroom
Read Rashmi's blog
Doing access digitally
Louise Wildish - Producer, People Dancing
Access as the starting point for creativity
Date posted: 31 May 2018
Thanks to funding from digital commissioning body The Space, the 11 Million Reasons to Dance photography exhibition has hit a much bigger online audience. Yet, as producer Louise Wildish explains, it had to be made accessible…
Read Louise's blog
Still dancing after 21 years
Eileen Burrows with the Growing Older Dis(Gracefully) Dance company
Come on Eileen! Senior dance group member celebrates at 21
Date posted: 23 May 2018
88-year-old Eileen Burrows is one of the more senior members of the Growing Older (Dis) Gracefully Dance company, in Liverpool. The retired school nurse is about to perform in its celebration of 21 years of dancing.
Read Eileen's blog
Viva Eastbourne!
Claire Chritou (left) and Claire Tabraham celebrate their Arts Award of the Year
BBC captures tale of two Claires
Date posted: 21 May 2018
If you tuned into BBC Radio 4’s Listening Project, which profiled a number of conversations about ‘The Power of Dance’, you may remember the first podcast that featured two women who have devoted themselves to Eastbourne Dance Space…
Get the full story
Completely tangoed: body and soul
Kate Swindlehurst
Once a dancer, always a dancer
Date posted: 10 April 2018
She began with ballet, took up tango and, despite her Parkinson’s diagnosis, dance artist and writer Kate Swindlehurst has continued to be what she’s been since she was four-years-old… a dancer
Read Kate's blog
11MRTD in Doncaster
Photographer: James Mulkeen
Partnerships and support
Date posted: 09 January 2019
In the third of a blog series featuring People Dancing partners from its 11 Million Reasons to Dance Strategic Touring Programme, Helen Jones, Assistant Director at darts (Doncaster Community Arts), explains how the project enabled her to change her view and how this has influenced their next steps
Read Helen's blog
Agent for Change
Hannah Barker
Living the legacy
Date posted: 01 November 2018
Hannah Barker, Creative Producer at Belgrade Theatre, Coventry explains how and why 11 Million Reasons to Dance supported the process of welcoming an Agent for Change into the theatre and its local community
Read Hannah's blog
Translating touch
Kath Kimber-McTiffen, Wriggle Dance Theatre
Dance meets science to explore touch
Date posted: 01 November 2018
On meeting a prominent neuroscientist, Kath Kimber-McTiffen, of Wriggle Dance Theatre, could see that the theme of ‘touch’ not only links the arts and science… it might also create a beautiful, interactive dance piece
Read Kath's blog
Dance was a tonic
Elizabeth Janis. Photo Gemma Smith
How dance took Elizabeth smiling into her 10th decade
Date posted: 23 October 2018
As People Dancing launches an online learning programme for dancing with older people, Elizabeth Janis has just celebrated her 90th birthday. She credits the discovery of a local dance group for her continued love for life
Read Elizabeth's blog
Four years on...
Around the world in 1,460 days
Date posted: 05 October 2018
It’s exactly four years since People Dancing commissioned photographer Sean Goldthorpe to work on its 11 Million Reasons to Dance exhibition and campaign. Our Director of Engagement Louise Wildish reflects... and looks ahead
Read Louise's blog
Beyond the 'usual suspects'
Martin Wilson - Executive Director, TIN Arts
How 'Great Art' showed the way to 'think beyond, reimagine and challenge'
Date posted: 02 October 2018
In the first of a blog series featuring People Dancing partners from its 11 Million Reasons to Dance Strategic Touring Programme, Martin Wilson of TIN Arts explains how the project went beyond those ‘usual suspects’
Read Martin's blog
Dancing for equality
Anne-Marie Smalldon, Combination Dance Company
Heroic tale in women's history made real through dance
Date posted: 18 September 2018
Anne-Marie Smalldon, Artistic Director of Combination Dance Company, blogs on 100nehundred, a dance/history collaboration with The National Archives inspired by this year’s centenary of British women’s suffrage and modern gender equality issues
Read Anne-Marie's blog
It don't mean a thing...
Nancy Hitzig
Swing sisters question politics of partner dance
Date posted: 29 June 2018
People Dancing members Nancy Hitzig and Cat Foley are rehearsing a dance, music, comedy showcase for the Grimeborn Festival, London. Here dancer and choreographer Nancy shares her lindy hop journey, looks at the politics of partner dance and ‘Swing, Sister, Swing’.
Read Nancy's blog
Financing the dream
People Dancing Director of Development Ruth Bates with her son, Jamie
Your child got into dance school! Now, how to pay for it?
Date posted: 26 June 2018
It’s from this time of year People Dancing gets phone calls and emails from anxious parents wanting to support their children through dance training. Here our Director of Development Ruth Bates blogs on how these dreams, though expensive, can be made real.
Read Ruth's blog
Learning from Parkinson's
Danielle Teale. Photo by Sara Hibbert
Curiosity, the moving body and identity
Date posted: 23 May 2018
Independent dance artist Danielle Teale, will co-lead an ‘Introduction to dance for Parkinson’s’ course at this year’s People Dancing Summer School. Here Danielle blogs on how dancing with Parkinson's has made a significant contribution to her dance practice... and her life.
Read Danielle's blog
Dancing a way of life
Ruth Kent
How do we dance with those whose major challenge is in movement?
Date posted: 17 April 2018
We dance to express our lives. For some, this can be a life with Parkinson’s. Dance artist Ruth Kent explains how, in growing a dance class in Aberdeen, she wanted to shape content around real life experiences
Read Ruth's blog
No barriers
Photo shows Natasha Britton, Magpie Dance
Seeing every 'body' dance - for enjoyment, for art, for a career
Date posted: 23 February 2018
Inspired by artistic director Avril Hitman and all the Magpie Dance team, Natasha Britton explains her passion to achieve "a world where a learning disability is no barrier to personal and artistic success in dance"
Read Natasha's blog
What's in a name?
Kiki Gale - Director, Dance for Parkinson's Partnership UK. Photo by Rachel Cherry
Partnership set to build
Date posted: 27 November 2017
With a change of name to The Dance for Parkinson’s Partnership UK, the former Dance for Parkinson’s Network is now well positioned blogs Kiki Gale...
Read Kiki's blog
Dance for Parkinson's
Steff Streat
"More cheerful, more energised, more able to cope"
Date posted: 20 November 2017
From a cuppa and a chat to doing a Haka – Steff Streat, who has lived with Parkinson’s for 10 years, blogs on the difference going to a dance for Parkinson’s class makes to her quality of life





Read Steff's blog
Capturing creativity
Ruth Pethybridge
Capturing creativity of a slow dance
Date posted: 24 October 2017
Ruth Pethybridge, co-author of Any Age, Any Body, Any Dance draws breath to explain why she wanted to make a short film as well as the book...
Why make a film?
Our natural instinct
Vincent E. Thomas. Photo by Rachel Cherry
"When someone says, 'I'm not a dancer', I simply don't believe them"
Date posted: 18 October 2017
US dance artist Vincent E. Thomas took time out from his visit to People Dancing’s international conference, to explain his quest to recover something that’s in danger of being lost… our natural instinct to move.
Read Vincent's blog
In praise of... "bird-scarers"
Alison Williams and Julia Melton at the Edinburgh dance for Parkinson's class
Keeping birds' nests out of our hair - the gift of dance volunteers
Date posted: 12 September 2017
A conference panel speaker, Dr Alison Williams, who is currently working with the University of Edinburgh, teamed up with a fellow member of her dance for Parkinson’s class, Julia Melton, to blog for us in praise of volunteers...
Read our blog post
Jonnie Peacock on Strictly
Louise Wildish - Producer & Director, 11 Million Reasons to Dance
Johnnie Peacock being on Strictly will better reflect our society
Date posted: 05 September 2017
Paralympian Jonnie Peacock featuring on this year's Strictly will reflect a more truthful representation of our society, blogs People Dancing's Louise Wildish, Producer & Director of our strategic touring programme 11 Million Reasons to Dance...
Read Louise's blog
Inclusive beauty of Parkour
Alister O'Loughlin, The Urban Playground. Photo by Rachel Cherry
How Parkour can breathe life into communities
Date posted: 08 August 2017
People Dancing caught up with Performance-Parkour (2PK) specialist Alister O’Loughlin at this year’s Summer School, following his session as part of the Exploring different dance techniques for your practice course.
Read on
Made in Sheffield
Nathan Geering - Artistic Director
'Steel City Man' set to open Special Olympics and bring disabled artists to the fore
Date posted: 03 August 2017
It was a special time for Artistic Director Nathan Geering as he prepared to stage one massive Olympic show in his adopted home city of Sheffield…
Read Nathan's blog
Learning & Parkinson's
Miriam Early, Scottish Ballet. Photo by Christina Riley
"...by dancing with people living with Parkinson's, we come to understand ourselves better"
Date posted: 26 July 2017
Dance practitioner Miriam Early has always loved what she does yet admits to going a bit sulky whenever it came to any serious self-analysis of her craft. But that’s now changed… and she’s discovered a beauty she never thought she’d find.
Read Miriam's blog
Voice and Presence
Louise Katerega. Pic by Benedict Johnson
20 minutes to change our world
Date posted: 12 May 2017
Louise Katerega is producer of Voice and Presence, the first collaborative project as an Associate Artist of People Dancing. Voice and Presence sets out to acknowledge, amplify and celebrate the voice of women of colour in participatory dance...
Read more
Dancing through pain
Raquel Meseguer
I have chronic pain. But I still need to dance
Date posted: 21 April 2017
Raquel Meseguer, Co-Founder of Lost Dog, reflects on her journey from professional dancer, through injury, to developing projects that explore chronic pain in performance.
Read Raquel's blog
'Laughter, feeling lovely, joy'
Alison Williams
My engagement with dance: words cast spells...
Date posted: 11 April 2017
Alison Williams, of Edinburgh University, describes herself as ‘a late-onset academic’ having got her Doctorate at 66, just after her Parkinson’s diagnosis, in 2012. To help mark Parkinson’s Awareness Week (10-16 April) we asked Alison to blog for us on the importance dance plays in her life with Parkinson’s…
Parkinson's Week blog
A democracy of dance
Paula Turner
Room for us all on the dance floor
Date posted: 24 March 2017
People Dancing's Chris Stenton shared a post show discussion panel with Paula Turner, artistic director of Grand Gestures Dance Collective at Leap 2017. Paula likes to push the boundaries of dance, especially dance made by older dancers...
Read Paula's blog
A spark starts a prairie fire
A spark starts a prairie fire
Date posted: 15 March 2017
Anthony Peppiatt reflects on initiating the community dance project at Ludus Dance in the early 1980s, and how his radical politics had been central to this. Christopher Thomson introduces.
Read Anthony's blog
Dance without touch?
Cecilia Macfarlane
BLOG Post
Date posted: 28 October 2016
The author of our very first People Dancing blog is the renowned community dance pioneer, Cecilia Macfarlane. We’re grateful to Cecilia for getting our blog off the ground, especially as she penned it on a plane en route from Japan to San Francisco!
Read Cecilia's blog...
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