Introduction

Sharing the space to dance, to imagine, to make friends, to work together, to put on a show or simply enjoy the moment. The journeys of dance in this book are diverse. Differently abled bodies create new movement vocabularies and pedagogical dialogues with their teachers, choreographers and fellow dancers. These conversations embody a diversity of narratives, contexts and cultures that are revealed through experiencing dance and journeying from empathy to empowerment. These journeys are not experienced alone. Parents, carers, teachers, artists, families and friends work alongside NGOs, government departments and policy makers, all inching towards an equitable future where access to and inclusion in artistic and cultural practice, according to the United Nations Convention of the Child (2006), ¹ is a basic human right. Others are on a collision course where discrimination and historical and cultural prejudices impede and restrict the creative potential of the expressive body and different lived experiences. The 2006 UNESCO Road Map for Arts Education strives to highlight the importance for all young people of the world of gaining access to the practice of the arts, including dance, in formal and informal educational settings, for their overall education as human beings, but also for the vast potential of the arts to contribute to resolving social and cultural challenges. The 2006 objectives include learner-centered approaches ensuring relevance, promoting universal values and equity in terms of access and outcomes, social inclusion and individual rights. Students’ lives, aspirations and interests, as well as those of their families and societies, should be recognised and respected. Central to the significance and importance of the arts is the tenet to empower young people with the locally germane abilities required for them to function successfully in their society and culture. To fulfill this quest there is a need for trained and motivated artists and teachers in dance education.