Photo: Malashock Dance offers a dance class called thisABILITY for children and adults with disabilities. Stephanie Fields, left, Bryan Glass and instructor Molly Puryear move across the floor to the accompaniment of Michael Jackson’s song “Beat It” while performing a series of choreographed steps. — Sean M. Haffey
POINT LOMA — John Malashock smiles, then pauses thoughtfully when asked about how a community dance program for the disabled fits into the mission of his 25-year-old company, Malashock Dance.
“Well … my tune on this has changed,” he admits with a slight grin.
In the days when he was building his Point Loma-based modern/contemporary dance company, Malashock saw anything that got in the way of creating his own dance pieces as an unnecessary distraction.
“But when I saw the impact these classes had on the lives of people out in the community, it really made me believe what we’ve always said as a company … that dance can change lives.”
Nonverbal expression
On a sunny Friday afternoon last month, Malashock was one of five audience members watching an informal performance by students in Dance With thisABILITY! It’s a 3-year-old class Malashock offers to teens and adults with intellectual disabilities, autism, Down syndrome and cerebral palsy.
As Malashock and parents watched, the six excited students carefully worked their way through a series of tightly choreographed steps, turns and hand gestures set to the words of a melancholy Taylor Swift ballad: “You’ll be all right, no one can hurt you now … .”
Stephanie, 15, memorizes each step instantly, but muscle paralysis keeps her from performing them as she would like. Bryan, an adult with Down syndrome, concentrates feverishly on getting each move just right. And quiet, bespectacled teenager Patrick ignores the choreography altogether to spread his arms out like an airplane and slowly spin in his circles.
READ MORE: http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2013/mar/02/malashock-offers-disabled-dance-class/
Source: UTSandiego / MJ-Upbeat.com
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