‘Like swimming through the air’: my thrilling role in Giselle with the Royal Ballet’s wheelchair dancers

I use a wheelchair and yearn to dance like I did when I was a kid. Could I possibly hold my own in a class run by inspirational disabled dance star Kate Stanforth and the Royal Ballet? From ballroom to hip-hop, I tried many different dance classes growing up, but nothing ever stuck for too long. My body never found its rhythm to any music, I quickly became exhausted from any physical exertion, and I concluded I must just not have been made for exercise. My theory was confirmed when I was 13 – and I was diagnosed with Friedreich’s ataxia (FA), which is a rare, progressive neuromuscular disease that causes nerve damage, muscle weakness and mobility loss. Now, aged 29, I use a wheelchair and a lot of my coordination has been eroded. I still love to dance but it’s increasingly rare I get the chance. Continue reading…