via occasional contributer to this blog, Wheel Chair Dancer.

The article says you are working as hard as you can to get back as much as you can. As you are doing all that PT and rehab, can I offer you a glimpse of my life as a disabled dancer? The most powerful moment of performance I have ever had was an outdoor gig at a high stakes venue. You’ll remember the difficulties and joys of dancing outside: being dazzled by the sun, yet frozen by any wind, the joys of the outdoor stage, the likely absence of wings, the absence of customary lighting, a sound system which both gives and takes the music you are accustomed to hearing. All that set against the freedom of the fresh air and the beauty of the sky and the trees. This performance had all of those aspects and an even scarier moment: an audience of over 900 people.

And boy, could they see us sweat, hear us breathe, sense our effort. They were so close that I could have touched them. So close that there was no hiding. So close that I worried. Outdoor stages don’t have ramps, but they built one for us. I pushed up that ramp (trying to keep a neutral face) as my entrance approached. Sound check had been fine, but nothing had prepared me for the density of all those bodies. I barely recognized my cue. READ THE WHOLE THING