Feathers
Blind & Visually Impaired accessible R&D

Birds' eyes view of dancers in a clump hugging

This project aims to create and advocate for greater social and cultural inclusion for Blind and Visually Impaired artists & communities through dance.

Considering blindness, as a source of multi-sensory knowledge, choreographer Sandrine Monin and composer Roberto D. Rusconi, with the support of IntrasonusUK, will research the perception of movement and the influence of sound and environment, to investigate an accessible creative process and development of dance work.

The project also explores the use of Echome, a wearable technology for sound and movement interaction as a tool for creating and synthesising material for performance. It investigates ways to create with limited visual input and to enhance movement perceptions using audio description, sounds, lights and touch.

Feathers is an emotional journey raising awareness of how we connect with our senses, ourselves, and others.

A dancer reaching out to another dancer's hand

Image of dancers in a dance studio. In a spotlight, two dancers are lying down on the floor, while further back three f others are standing or kneeling

Throughout the first part of 2022, the creative team undertook three-week studio R&D in London, as well as a series of creative workshops for blind and visually impaired people, supported by BlindAid and RNIB.

The first part of the project culminated in an informal sharing at the Bloomsbury Theatre Studio aiming at gathering feedback from an audience made of blind, visually impaired and sighted people. The work developed by choreographer Sandrine Monin and in collaboration with sighted and visually impaired artists was performed on an original musical score created by composer Roberto D. Rusconi.

Following the positive feedback, the work entered its second stage of research, with another three-week studio R&D and a series of workshops in Leeds and in Bradford in Winter 2022/23.

The result of the research was presented in an informal sharing followed by a Q&A, on February 18th, 2023 at 4pm, at Stage@Leeds in Leeds University campus.