"It returns dance to the masses" | Gathering in a Better World

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From December 12 to December 18, 2022 (after Guangzhou relaxed its COVID prevention rules on November 30, 2022), four local disabled dancers with over five years of experience in symbiotic dance, Shiwen, Huiheng, Dajie (Zhang Rongmei), and A Jin (Zhai Jin), ran a 7-day online workshop titled “Gathering in a Better World” Symbiotic Dance Workshop. The workshop was hosted by the Goethe-Institut and the Mistakable Symbiotic Dance Troupe and was joined by 24 participants from all over the country, 11 of whom have disabilities. Eight participants stayed for the entire workshop, two of whom have disabilities (one with vision loss and the other with mental disorders). Publicized through its WeChat channel, the workshop had no restrictions on the participant’s age, physical differences, or dance experience, and did not ask for a registration fee. The workshop was conducted in video and audio formats, complimented by sign language interpretation and visual description to accommodate the needs of participants with different disabilities.

Goethe-Institut and Mistakable Symbiotic Dance Troupe, “Gathering in a Better World” (2022, Guangzhou)

The four founders of the workshop have all experienced frustration and self-denial as disabled people living in society. After joining Guangzhou’s Mistakable Symbiotic Dance Troupe, they started exploring the possibilities of their bodies through dance and manifested these possibilities in everyday life as they learned to embrace themselves, extend empathy to others, and live in the present. Titled “Gathering in a Better World,” the workshop aims to break down the barriers among people’s bodily differences and embark on a physical and spiritual journey on the paths of self-discovery, self-awareness, the art of dancing, diversity, and accessibility.

Throughout the seven-day program, Shiwen, Huiheng, Dajie, and A Jin each shared their life experiences and dance practices, unpacking their paths to understanding and reconciling with their disabilities. These lessons are also reflected in the exercises they designed to guide the participants to explore their bodies, which they summarized as “cultivating the body” (awareness of oneself), “building connection” (awareness of others), “harnessing the mind” (making conscious choices), and “maintaining equality for all” (creating an environment where everyone is welcome and treated equally).

In “cultivating the body,” the instructor invites the participants to choose a body part to act out the highest, lowest, largest, smallest, fastest, and slowest movements, find the body’s center of gravity, feel the structure and temperature of the body, and connect with the most intimate self. There is even an exercise to draw the image of a “home” with the body.

In “building connection,” the instructor invites the participants to dance in a domino sequence so they feel more at ease in entering the state of improvisation. Each participant’s movement varies from one another, but a formal or rhythmic continuity remains. This exercise helps manifest and strengthen the connection among the participants and between the participants and the objects they dance with.

In “harnessing the mind,” participants learn to trust their judgment and respect their inner self. One of the organizers, Dajie, said in the workshop, “In symbiotic dance, you don’t have to do the things you don’t want to do. In the exercise just now, there were times when I wasn’t moving my body, but I was observing in silence while my heart was dancing. There aren’t too many rules and regulations. You can do your own thing and make your own choice to follow the group or not, participate in activities or not. In this process, you see that everyone is beautiful in their own way.”

In “maintaining equality for all,” participants learn to cultivate a dance environment where everyone can equally participate. This comprehensive introduction to the origin and theories of symbiotic dance makes you realize that the people who told you that you cannot dance when you were growing up are utterly wrong. Symbiotic dance helps you develop an acute sensation toward your body and the relationship between your body and gravity, channel the power of contact and improvisation, and learn the systematic approaches to dance with people of different abilities and physical conditions. It returns dance to the masses.

Goethe-Institut and Mistakable Symbiotic Dance Troupe, “Gathering in a Better World” (2022, Guangzhou)

As the workshop progressed, both disabled and non-disabled participants gave positive feedback. One of the participants, Tong Tong, said, “The workshop today was so moving and gave me a very powerful experience. During the domino exercise at the beginning, I saw that my dance partners responded to my movement with their own and felt a visceral connection with them. Later on, I felt emotional when I used my body to write my name and draw my home. During A Jin’s speech, I saw him shining with strength as he broke through his limitations and embraced his body. On the other hand, I may not have developed the same strength myself. Although I’m not disabled, I have a lot of rejections toward my body. Through the workshop today, I sensed a deep connection with my partners on the screen, myself, and the rest of the world. I’ve never experienced such a multi-layered connection. It’s a very heartfelt and joyful experience.”

Some participants saw the benefits of the workshop’s online format. Xiaolang, another participant in the workshop, said, “Meeting online doesn’t require so much interpersonal interaction, so I can spend more time with myself without worrying about how others think of me. I can move my body however I want.”

Goethe-Institut and Mistakable Symbiotic Dance Troupe, “Gathering in a Better World” (2022, Guangzhou)

Jiuguniang, the director of Guangzhou Tree of Life Disabilities Innovation Center, expressed her support for the project, saying, “This workshop not only teaches symbiotic dance but also the basic approaches to working with people with disabilities. Symbiotic dance may not be well known in China, but it plays a very important role in helping people with disabilities embrace their bodies and open their minds. Dance belongs to everyone. It celebrates the diversity of life while creating an atmosphere and environment of mutual respect, safety, and self-awareness. It helps people explore their relationship with their bodies and the outside world, especially for people with disabilities.”

However, she also argues that “The program’s integration can be further improved. If disabled and nondisabled people work together to initiate or design a project, they build a mutual understanding of each other. If only disabled or nondisabled people are present, there will be limitations. It requires the organizers to engage in mutual dialogues with others.”

Ms. Deng, the director of the dance projects at Guangzhou International Cultural Exchange Center for People with Disabilities, comments, “This project helps improve the mental health of people with disabilities and introduces them to the art of dance. Complimentary to the existing public services, it meets the community’s spiritual and cultural needs and advances social integration.” However, she also has concerns, saying, “different disabilities can cause a wide range of physiological conditions and psychological traits, resulting in people’s various needs. If the program does not set a target audience or design its content for a specific community, complications might arise during the program, making it difficult to satisfy the expectations of all participants.”

I learned that the project had been in planning for a long time before the continuing impact of the pandemic forced it to operate online. The remote format posed great challenges to symbiotic dance which relies heavily on in-person interaction. Under the city’s sudden relaxation of its COVID prevention rules, the participants and instructors also had to confront the impending disease. It became increasingly difficult for them to attend and conduct the program. However, I believe that perhaps it is precisely under such special circumstances and limitations that the participants benefited from the program’s ability to connect them from afar and build a shared community of solidarity. This is a lesson we can all learn from symbiotic dance. As the instructor said in the workshop, “Each of us is connected by a net of invisible threads, and now we are also connected by the internet. Each of us is a dot on the net so your actions may affect others, but it is their choice to follow you or not.”

Author: Kong Changzhang

Translator: Sue Mengchen Xu

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