“We are redefining the boundaries of contemporary dance…” Stopgap Dance Company talk Lived Fiction

TheQR was lucky enough to speak with Lucy Glover, Executive Producer, and Lucy Bennett, Co-Artistic Director of Stopgap Dance Company, about their latest production, Lived Fiction. This innovative dance show integrates features such as live audio descriptions, captioning, and projection art, pushing the boundaries of accessibility in the arts. The piece, developed under the European Research Council-funded project “DANCING,” aims to enhance cultural participation for Disabled individuals through EU law. The leaders of Stopgap, a company renowned for its inclusive approach, shed light on the creative processes that fuse artistic excellence with accessibility in their most ambitious project to date.

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Lucy and Lucy – thank you for talking to me! Now given that Lived Fiction was developed in conjunction with research exploring how EU law can promote cultural participation for disabled individuals, how do you anticipate the show contributing to ongoing discussions about the intersection of arts, accessibility, and legal frameworks in a post-Brexit landscape?

We continue to work in relationship with Maynooth University on the research paper they will publish and then a subsequent conference to discuss this next year. We will be touring the work internationally for the next couple of years and we hope that the work speaks to our audience, connects us with new partnerships and generates conversation. If that all leads to any action that will be a bonus. Sometimes the best things are the most unexpected things to come out of a live performance. We don’t underestimate the meaningful impact this can have on an individual but to create change at policy level will take many more people around the table and a cross sector conversation. 

With Lived Fiction’s emphasis on promoting cultural diversity through EU law, how do you see the production resonating with international audiences beyond the scope of European legislation, particularly in regions where similar legal frameworks might not exist?

The way we are touring Lived Fiction requires a meaningful partnership with our venues to ensure that it is as accessible as possible to as diverse an audience as possible. We will be investing in our relationships to achieve this and hope this will bring new audiences to these venues as well as support Deaf, Disabled, Neurodivergent and non disabled audiences alike to experience something in this way for the first time. This is key for why we have made this work in the way that we have. It is for the audience. We have already seen a fantastic and moving response in Dublin at our premiere. For a disabled audience member to be considered first and foremost in a creative process and feel the care towards them is groundbreaking. We feel that same care from them rebounding back to us too.

Stopgap Dance Company has a history of advocating for inclusivity in the arts. How does Lived Fiction build upon this legacy and address current global conversations around disability rights and cultural representation?

We have always said we did not need to make political work, that by being a diverse group of dancers on stage we were political. 

Over the last 20 years we have done a lot of work off stage advocating for considerate training for Disabled artists. From when a young person wants to do dance as a hobby to when they want to be able to access professional dance training.  It has been a slow process and we are always asking ourselves why progress was slow.  We had to admit we must be a part of the problem.  It is no good leading by example if the people that need to experience our work cannot access it. Lived Fiction has embedded creative access for diverse audiences because we need to play to more than just a typical dance audience, if we are to shift perspectives. It was a central objective for Stopgap to create a shared experience with a diverse audience. Sharing emotions together is what connects us as human beings – therefore we all need to access the punch line at the same time. 

Live on-stage accessibility is a principal aspect of Lived Fiction. Could you elaborate on how these elements were developed to ensure inclusivity while maintaining the integrity of the artistic vision?

Lived Fiction embeds creative access into every corner of the production. There are channels that are made clear – such as creative captions, dancer’s describing themselves and audio description. There are also many subtle approaches to access that not everyone will notice such as, projection art that represents the music, individual pedestrian costume sounds to support echolocation and a ghost light and gentle murmur of conversation on the soundtrack to encourage a relaxed environment. 

We wanted to make a production that offered choices and cared for the audience. Creative Access and the collaborators who specialise in artistic access were in the studio with us from the beginning of the process. We maintained the integrity of the art by having clear drivers for the scenes which everyone could lean towards. When starting I tried creating from the access tool and then starting from the artistic idea, eventually these two became one and it was a constant dialogue between myself, the collaborators and Stopgap’s Access Artist Lily Norton.

Lived Fiction showcases a diverse ensemble of performers. How does the show challenge traditional notions of who belongs on stage and redefine the boundaries of contemporary dance?

There have been many productions that showcase diverse performers over the years. Our unique quality is that we have been working, making and dancing together for decades. Our practice and inclusive culture offers distinctly different dancers to explore working together to create a new way of dancing. We like to play with the familiar and unfamiliar. We will share something you recognise and then surprise you with something you have not yet experienced in contemporary dance. We are redefining the boundaries of contemporary dance by making choreography and a production that only a group of diverse dancers could have ownership over.  There is a line in one of the scenes that pays homage to the idea of and the musical  ‘A Chorus Line’ whilst revealing our  dancer’s inner thoughts as an inclusive company. 

The collaboration between Deaf, Disabled, neurodivergent, and non-disabled creatives is central to Lived Fiction. Can you discuss the unique insights and perspectives that each brought to the creative process?

I can only speak from my perspective as to what each person brought. It was clear from the start that although our Deaf, Disabled and Neurodivergent artists are proud of their Disabled identity it was also their background, family, journeys and training that influenced the production. Each person brought a huge amount of experience and poured that into their role, they actively contributed to the direction and then hung back when they sensed something needed time to settle. 

Deaf artist Ben Glover was a new member of the team. Ben designed creative captions for the work and interpreted the music with projection art. Ben supported the work from the start, gently observing the pattern work in the choreography and highlighting it in his text design. Ben alongside Dougie Evans our Sound Designer worked hard not to overwhelm the work with their particular art form. As collaborators, we had to let the work find its own way and continue to give it space to breathe. It sounds quite spiritual but collaborating as diverse artists is all about tuning into what we are crafting together and noticing what shape it is taking, we have to feel safe to share our observations in order to coax whatever it is we are composing together. There is always a humility within Stopgap’s inclusive practice and we believe this enables something unique and poly perspective to grow.   

Professor Delia Ferri highlighted the dialogue between researchers and artists in shaping the production. Do you envision this interdisciplinary exchange influencing future collaborations between academia and the arts?

Stopgap’s production Lived Fiction was part of the research study led by Professor Delia Ferri. The exchange between research and artists has fed into the research paper which is in its final stages of publication. The exchange between academia and art has been in place long before our particular collaboration and we very much hope that it will continue in many forms as it elevates the status of the impact of art on society. For the process of Lived Fiction the connection with the access consultants and a wider variety of people with lived experience of disability shaped our creative access which was elevated by this dialogue. We hope that Stopgap’s integrated creative access in Lived Fiction could influence the arts and specifically dance as an example of what is possible. This could shape the way our sector supports diverse audiences to access high quality art. We are particularly excited about showcasing what is possible when accessibility is truly integrated into the experience of art.

Stopgap Dance Company has been at the forefront of inclusive dance for nearly thirty years. Looking ahead, what role do you see Lived Fiction playing in advancing the company’s mission and inspiring other artists to prioritize accessibility and diversity in their own work?

We hope so. We know it takes time and for some artists, it feels like a compromise to their vision. We want to share Lived Fiction as an example of the playfulness and depth that artistic access can layer into dance and theatre. We often talk about creating a sense of longing for something fairer by showing them what it might be like. We hope this will support them to put the work in and make artistic productions for everyone, not just non-disabled people.

All imagery except Lucy Glover headshot: Chris Parkes

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For more information on Stopgap Dance Company, tickets, and more, click here.

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