10 We Admire
In line with our theme of ‘Strength in Disability’, this month’s 10 We Admire has been chosen from a wide pool of companies who are working to confront myths about disability, and to radically transform theatre practices by telling stories through the lens of disability, paving the way for the normalisation of inclusive practices. There is an ever-growing movement of companies and collectives rewriting the stage rulebook, ensuring the true breadth of experiences of neurodiverse, deaf, and disabled people are represented on stage, just like the rest of society.
As Emma Selwyn of the collective Not Your Circus Dog states, ‘Neurotypical and most able-bodied people are allowed to show a wide range of humanity – let’s not forget that neurodivergent people have just as wide a range of humanity too. It’s just on slightly different terms.’
Blue Teapot Theatre Company
Originally founded in 1996, the Galway-based Blue Teapot Theatre Company has evolved from a community arts project within the Brothers of Charity Services Galway to become an award-winning independent theatre company that supports an increasingly rich and diverse practice. Working to radically transform theatre practices by telling stories through the lens of disability, they pave the way for inclusive practices to become the norm. By pushing the boundaries of what is possible, they celebrate creativity and challenge the narrative about intellectual disability. Read more about Blue Teapot Theatre Company here. Chickenshed
Chickenshed is a theatre company for everybody. Based in London, for fifty years they have created bold and beautiful work based on their limitless belief in people. Through their productions, performance training, education courses, and outreach projects, their mission is to create wonder out of chaos and change out of challenge. ‘We succeed together or not at all. This is our vision of how the world should be – a society where everyone can flourish. We’re here to shake things up by sharing our experience with each other, with those who hold power and with those who feel they have none. We do this on stage, off stage and wherever people come together.’ You can read more about Chickenshed here. Compagnie de L’Oiseau Mouche
In 1978, a group of actors, directors, and social workers in France launched a theatre workshop with seven people with mental disabilities. The group denounced the absence of people with mental disabilities on the theatre stages of the time and the fact that any artistic practice was systematically associated with therapeutics. Their first creation, Pantins à vendre (Puppets for sale), triumphed at the Lille Opera and toured for two years. The workshop soon became the Compagnie de l’Oiseau-Mouche (The Hummingbird). In 1981, it became a professional company, based in Roubaix, with twenty-three permanent acting positions. Since then, some forty artists have directed the actors. The Théâtre de l’Oiseau-Mouche is a space for encounters between multiple artistic visions, and for interactions between the invited artists and the actors of l’Oiseau-Mouche. It supports creation by hosting numerous teams in creative and research residencies. Read more about this pioneering theatre company here. Mind the Gap
Founded in 1988 by Tim Wheeler and Susan Brown, Mind the Gap exists to enable people with learning disabilities and autism to be part of an arts sector free from discrimination, where people are trained, respected, and employed equally, and feature every day on stage and on screen. The company works with learning disabled and autistic artists to deliver a bold, cutting edge, and world class artistic programme. A programme that excites, surprises, and challenges audiences locally, nationally, and internationally. Click here to read more about Mind the Gap. Moomsteatern
Moomsteatern is an inclusive professional theatre company based in Malmö, Sweden. Actors with learning disabilities are employed on a full-time basis, on stage most often integrated with non-disabled freelance actors. The sole aim of Moomsteatern is to produce performing arts of high artistic quality. The theatre was established in 1987 with the express goal of working towards artistic objectives only, eschewing all therapeutic and social aims. This means that the focus group is always the audience, the story, and the art. Moomsteatern is a non-profit foundation, with 15 employees including artists, technical staff, and administration. Read more about this theatre company here. National Disability Theatre
As of June 30, 2023, the UK’s National Disability Theatre’s (NDT) operations have stopped. The NDT Handbook, a free digital resource published on 1 July, 2023, is scheduled to remain on this site through 1 June, 2024. The National Disability Theatre was an organisation centred on the principles of disability justice, striving to employ professional theatre artists who create fully accessible theatre and storytelling that cultivates authentic, sensitive, and progressive attitudes towards disabled people. It also sought to change social policy and the narrative about disability culture, while providing a guiding model in accessibility for the arts and cultural sector. You can read more about the NDT here. Not Your Circus Dog
Not Your Circus Dog is a UK collective of learning disabled and neurodivergent performers who are unapologetic and perform what the describe as ‘shameless, sexy punk crip cabaret’. With luscious lip syncs, sweaty dances, and verbatim stories, Not F**kin Sorry was their first show. Click here for more information on the Not Your Circus Dog collective. Ramps on the Moon
Ramps On The Moon, a UK collective, enriches the stories they tell and the way they tell them by normalising the presence of Deaf and Disabled people both on and off stage. Alongside New Wolsey Theatre, Theatre Royal Stratford East, Nottingham Playhouse, Leeds Playhouse, Sheffield Theatres, and strategic partner Graeae Theatre, they share learnings between partners and across the industry. The work they do as a collective enables theatre buildings and workforces to break down barriers to those who may think theatre isn’t for them. Read more about Ramps on the Moon here. Shed
Shed is a non-mainstream musical theatre project where the journey is more meaningful than the destination. Based in Helsinki, Finland, their activities provide children and young people with the opportunity to be presented as their own, unique individuals. Each of us has a need to be seen – regardless of what age or appearance we are, what kind of body we were born into, or what kind of opinions and ideas we represent in the world. The aim of Shed is to establish musical theatre that emphasises diversity in Finland, making it a country where people dare to believe in dreams and be seen just as they are. You can learn more about Shed here. Teatr 21
Teatr 21 is a Polish theatre company whose actors are mainly people with Down syndrome and autism. During their 18 years of activity, they have created dozens of performances which have been presented in theatres and institutions all over Poland. In addition to its artistic activities, Teatr 21 is also involved in education, theatre pedagogy, publishing, and organising conferences, lectures, and work in international networks. Currently, Teatr 21 is part of the Centre for Inclusive Art project, which is the first social cultural institution in Warsaw entirely dedicated to the work of artists with disabilities. Its main task is to include various social groups in the field of art, culture, and science. Read more about Teatr 21 here.
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