"This ballet gala is part of the inclusive dance event, which aims to support equality among the disabled and non-disabled dancers. I believe this event would help us improve our awareness of the diffabled (differently abled) persons," the founder of a non-profit art group, Ballet ID, Mariska Febriyani stated during a press conference at British Council Indonesia, Jakarta.
The event, according to Febriyani, was an inspiration drawn from some disabled dancers she met during her study at Glasgow, UK.
"I saw many remarkable and talented diffabled dancers in UK. I want our diffabled community to actualize their potentials in arts, such as dance," she remarked.
Supported by British Council Indonesia, The Australian Embassy, and Institut Francais Indonesia (IFI), the event will feature a collaboration of some international dancers, such as Daniel Daw and Mirjam Gurtner (Candoco Dance Company/UK), Queensland Ballet and Marc Brew Company (Australia), Magali Saby (France), and the Universal Ballet (South Korea).
Apart from the international talents, an Indonesian deaf dancer, Isro Ayu Permatasari, will also join the dance event under the "CanDoDance" performance.
"I am pleased and grateful to join this dance collaboration, although at the first time, I was little nervous on how to communicate with all the foreign talents. However, because I am extremely fond of dancing, I could overpower my fear and take part in the event," Permatasari noted.
She further explained that after three months of training, she and other dancers had found a right method to effectively communicate on the upcoming performance.
"We have been in the same rhythm now, and I really enjoyed the entire process during the dance workshop," she reiterated.
Besides Permatasari, the Ballet ID will also collaborate with some handicapped dancers who were also members of EKI Dance Company dancing groups, the choreographer, Yuliani Ho, noted.
"About 20 Indonesian dancers will perform with their wheel chairs. This is the first time that we are assisting the disabled persons, and our first challenge is to find a perfect timing for the dancers," Yuliani remarked.
Meanwhile, Daniel Dew, a British dancer of the UK-based Candoco Dance Company, remarked that the event would play an important role in reshaping peoples perception of the disabled community.
Ahead of the show, Mirjam Gurtner, a choreographer of Candoco Dance Company, also explained that the ballet gala not only helps the disabled dancers but also showcases the equal representations of the diverse talents on stage, which is the main mission of the event.
"I believe the stage is a platform to represent the society and the playground to envision new ways of living and being together," he said.(*)
Editor: Heru Purwanto
Copyright © ANTARA 2017
