Where did it start
In 2013, Candoco, a London-based dance company for disabled and non-disabled performers, visited Tbilisi, Georgia, with our support, and gave a performance that provided a serious challenge to some commonly-held ideas of what it means to be ‘disabled’. Candoco has now demonstrated the potential for inclusion of disabled people in the arts and creative sectors with performances throughout our part of the world. This has led to the formation of a core programme of our work in the region. It has taken a name that clearly describes its mission: Unlimited: Making the Right Moves. Because there must be no limits for those who want to dream and live and even to dance.
In Georgia, the Unlimited: Making the Right Moves programme found its pace beginning in September 2017 when venue audits for accessibility were conducted at the Rustaveli and Marjanishvili Theatres by Barbara Lisicki, a trainer from ShapeArts, a UK-based disabled-led arts organization. Ms. Lisicki then led a workshop on theatre accessibility for theatre professionals.
As September came to a close Deaf Men Dancing, the all-male deaf dance company gave an unprecedented performance of its new outdoor piece entitled TEN at the TBS International. With the support and cooperation of the Kote Marjanishvili State Drama Theatre November brought the Candoco Company and Dance Lab 1 for Georgian dancers interested in inclusive dance.