ABSTRACT
This chapter begins with narrative framing and an interview with Ugandan Joseph Tebandeke, followed by a critical reflection on Tebandeke’s dance work. This is done through the following frames: Firstly, negotiating the idea of ‘everyday activisms’ as both a political and theoretical way of looking at Tebandeke’s disability dance practice in East Africa. Secondly, the chapter engages a negotiated African understanding of the idea of ‘community’ and what this means for a dancer like Tebandeke. All of this is premised on Tebandeke’s articulated understanding of the power of collaborations – across borders and across continents – and how this traversing of global borders begins to reshape ideas of technique and training for dancers living with disabilities. Thirdly, the chapter celebrates Tebandeke’s constant commitment to rethinking dance around the African disabled ‘body beautiful’ as a political disability strategy that speaks to ideas of inclusion.
