Indiana Dance Program Gives Dancers With Disabilities a Stage of Their Own

In the Indianapolis suburb of Fishers, Indiana, a dance program is giving people with physical and intellectual disabilities a space to move, connect and perform on their own terms.

Dance Abilities, run at the Academy of Dance Arts, was founded by Claire Graham, who conceived the idea while in high school. Studying dance herself, she realized she had never been able to share that part of her life with her sister, who has Down syndrome. What began three years ago as a summer camp for eight children has expanded into year-round classes serving about 20 participants.

The program offers separate classes for children aged 18 months to 4, ages 4 to 7 and 8 to 12, as well as for teenagers and adults. Graham, who holds a degree in dance and a master's in recreational therapy, measures a good day not by technical precision but by whether students have fun and are challenged.

"I'm not looking for perfection of position and not looking for a perfect performance," Graham said. "Only a performance that they can feel confident about."

For Finn Vester, who has autism and Down syndrome, dance has become a way to communicate and connect with others, according to his mother, Nicole Vester. He had tried a martial arts class, but it did not suit the way he learns. At Dance Abilities, she said, Graham teaches him at his level, at a slower pace and with extra repetition, helping him feel proud, accomplished and part of a group.

Accommodations include slowing down instruction, relying more on visual cues than verbal directions, and using teacher "helpers" who physically guide students through movements. Catherine Benko, a 16-year-old helper, said the team sometimes introduces new elements to make the work a little harder.

The program also tailors its physical approach to different needs. For students with Down syndrome, who tend to be naturally more flexible and less strong, Graham focuses on building muscle tone. Students with autism, she said, often need more help with stretching.

Abigail MacGregor, who has Down syndrome, enjoys dancing through an obstacle course and performing her latest moves for friends and family after practicing all week. "I just love dance," she said. "The best thing of dance is having fun, being with all my dance crew."

Tucker McGarrell, 13, who has Down syndrome, does not walk but runs into his dance classes, his mother, Amanda McGarrell, said. She values that the activity is not another therapy appointment but something he genuinely enjoys, and that he has an accepting place to be himself, make friends and learn.

"It just like fills me with joy knowing that he's getting to do something that he loves too just like typical kids do," she said.

Graham believes the approach can work for any student. "If you give them the chance to succeed and meet them where they are, they can 100% grow," she said. For her, the clearest sign of success is a student's smile. "It warms my heart to hear my kiddos saying, 'Look, Mom, I did it!'" she said.

The dancers are not alone in performing through challenges. Ezra Frech, a two-time gold medal Paralympian and track and field athlete with a prosthetic leg, is competing on this season's "Dancing with the Stars" on ABC.