Beyond DisDance Festival celebrates creative accessibility

Limassol is set to host the Beyond DisDance Festival for the second time from January 13 to 14, with parallel activities starting on January 12. Organised by the Ipogia Skini NGO, the festival is dedicated to promoting inclusivity for people with disabilities and features four performances that explore the realm of creative accessibility.

Events kick off next Friday with an inclusive dance jam Jam and Bread at 6pm at Polichoros Synergeio followed by the screening of the short documentary film Koullou|Makka at 7.45pm and an open discussion on diversity in Cyprus’ performing arts scene at 8pm.

The festival’s main events and performance begin next Saturday with the Bodies We Fall For documentary performance by Nagia T. Karakosta, Elena Sokratous and Panagiota Zimbili. Ensuring the performance is accessible to all, it includes live interpretation in Cypriot sign language, supertitles, touch tours, and embedded audio descriptions.

At 9.30pm, the Who Am I Today? performance will take place. Demy Papathanasiou from Greece will present a choreographic examination of identity, mental health and collective trauma. This performance too will include tactile tours and text projections.

Sunday’s programme will begin with A-michania, a dance performance by Eirini Christofi exploring the kinesiology seen during epileptic seizures. The performance aims to raise questions about the emotional experiences of epilepsy and features accessibility elements such as sign language interpretation and introductory presentations for visually impaired audience members.

The last performance of the festival is by Alessandro Schiattarella titled Altrove+. This innovative dance performance centres around hands and just like the other productions, it prioritises inclusivity with live interpretation, touch tours, and embedded audio descriptions.

Beyond DisDance Festival

Performing arts festival with accessibility for those with disabilities. By Ipogia Skini NGO. January 12-14. Polichoris Synergeio, Limassol. 6pm-9pm. €8 per performance or €12 general entry. Tel: 99-784949