How To Hear "Come With Me" When It's Spoken Through a Power Wheelchair

by Zach Pine

One thing I love about dancing improvisationally in a group is the wonderful richness of experience that can be created, often unexpectedly. During our rehearsal last Monday, I had an unexpected moment of communication - one that is unique to physically integrated dance.

This past month, I've been dancing with the AXIS company, class participants, and community dancers rehearsing for the upcoming David Dorfman commission. Our sessions have always included improvisation, and offered great opportunities to practice the art of non-verbal communication. This past Monday, in the midst of a dance, I found myself non-verbally communicating with another dancer. My message was: "I'm standing right behind you - don't back up," and I sent it without any conscious thought, by thumping and wiggling gently against the rear handles of her power wheelchair. At a break later, I asked her if the message had gotten through, or whether I was just lucky that she didn't back up into me. She told me that my message had in fact gotten through, and invited me to feel free in the future to step up onto on the shelf at the rear of her chair if I found myself there again. A few minutes later, I found myself standing behind her in a dance. I signaled my presence as before, then stepped up onto the back of her chair. Then, unexpectedly, I felt her start to move her chair forward. She did it very gently and expressively, and I "heard" this as "come with me." So, rather than step off, I let her carry me forward. But I only took a short ride before I hopped off - because I didn't want to overstay my welcome, and I knew I hadn't yet learned to distinguish between "come with me for a short ride" and "let me carry you on long adventure." I'm going to work on that.