Dancing Wheels Performance at the Cleveland Museum of Art: Creating Art... From the Visual to the Physical at Cleveland Museum of Art: Gartner Auditorium

For Creating Art… From the Visual to the Physical, professional dancers of the Dancing Wheels Company step into the role of choreographers, transforming inspiration from the Cleveland Museum of Art’s collection into original works of physically integrated dance.

After exploring and engaging with selected works of visual art at the Museum, each dancer-choreographer will interpret what they see through their own creative lens. Color, shape, texture, composition, emotion, movement, historical context, and personal response become starting points for generating choreography. The dancers will experiment with translating visual images and ideas into physical movement, considering how bodies, wheelchairs, space, music, and relationships can communicate an artwork’s essence without simply recreating it.

The creative process reflects Dancing Wheels’ philosophy: dance is an art form accessible to people of all abilities, and the possibilities for movement and artistic expression are limitless. From this practice of physically integrated dance, the choreographers will create works that highlight the unique movement qualities, perspectives, and creative voices of both sit-down and stand-up dancers.

The resulting pieces give audiences a new way to experience visual art—moving from the gallery to the stage, from image to movement, and from the visual to the physical. The October 23 performance at the Cleveland Museum of Art will showcase these newly created works and the artistic voices of Dancing Wheels Company members as choreographers.

Choreographers

Zachary Biggs

Angelina DiFranco

Emilyann Dustman

Kylie Karam

Sara Lawrence-Sucato

Alexandra Martinez

DeMarco Sleeper

Nehemiah Spencer