Soft light washes through large storefront windows of the lobby at the Texas Ballet Theater School in Fort Worth, illuminating the room with a friendly glow. The school is still and hushed with anticipation on a Sunday afternoon in February. A new group of students will arrive any minute.
Instructor Mariana Blessing and educational program’s manager Catherine Roe open the doors with bright smiles and enthusiastic greetings as four young dancers with Down syndrome arrive with their families. In an instant, the school fills with excitement. The girls show off their ballet-pink leotards, bows, and sparkly shoes while parents and families chat warmly. Blessing and Roe shuffle the group down a long hall with photos of TBT dancers and productions on either side, saying goodbye to parents and siblings as they reach the studio door.
The girls are part of the inaugural class of the new Adaptive Dance program at Texas Ballet Theater, designed to meet the specific educational needs of students with Down syndrome in a safe environment. TBT offered a limited class series for children ages 5 to 7 in February and hopes to expand the offerings to include permanent programs available to more children with different disabilities. The program partners with the Rehabilitation Services Department at Cook Children’s to consult on therapeutic efforts.
“True to their title, adaptive classes are constantly adapting to the group of students in the room,” Roe says. “A traditional dance class may have a set curriculum or set of standards or expectations that all students follow, but adaptive dance classes are adapted to the specific group of students in the room.”
Colleen Howk grew up a dancer and always wanted to enroll her 6-year-old daughter, Yua, in classes but questioned whether the instructors would be able to effectively teach a child with Down syndrome. She wondered if a program separate from typically abled children was the right choice for Yua.
“Inclusion is such a big deal, and it feels like we have to fight for inclusion,” Howk says.
The mother of five’s apprehension was put to rest after seeing the TBT instructors interact with the children and how much her daughter loved the class.
“They were so mindful,” Howk says. “They were so careful and thoughtful of everyone’s needs.”
Howk adopted Yua while living in Japan with her family during her husband’s military service. They were moved by stories of adoption and made the decision to adopt a child that others may not want. Howk knew it was a sign when her husband heard about an adoption at a prayer brunch with their church in Japan. They connected with a faith-based service and adopted a young boy with Down syndrome. Later, they adopted Yua, as well.
“People don’t value people with special needs,” Howk says. “You aren’t guaranteed health and ability in life whether or not you are given the diagnosis prenatally or at birth.”
Class begins with warm-up exercises and stretching in a way that promotes strength, coordination, and cognition but feels like a game. Teachers and students sing along to upbeat songs that teach the young dancers to open and shut their hands or touch their chin, nose, and toes. Blessing, Roe, and volunteer physical, occupational, and speech therapists from Cook Children’s lead the class by example, singing along and hopping around the room like bunnies to the beat of the music.
The verbal cues in the songs give the kids fun instructions to pretend to be an elephant or a giraffe, raising their arms in a way that engages or stretches specific muscles. Hopping or walking on their “tippy toes” assists with balance and stability. Learning sequences can promote memory function, and a classroom atmosphere teaches social skills and relationship building, all with enthusiastic support and silliness from the instructors. Ayah Sayyed says the class is a time for her 5-year-old daughter Sabeel to embrace independence and focus on herself, away from the rest of the family.
“It’s her time to shine, and she’s using it any way she can,” Sayyed says.
Yua also seems to know this class is all about her. The young dancer has big brown eyes and dark hair. She is outgoing and confident, knows what she likes, and isn’t afraid to use her voice or be the center of attention. She and her classmates’ curiosity and independence lead them to explore and freestyle on their own, being gently redirected now and again by Roe, Blessing, and the volunteers.
The class is consistent to reinforce structure — no surprises. There is always a short story time and coloring session where students listen to Blessing read a dance-related storybook, and then everyone colors a ballerina coloring page. Yua asks for the purple crayon every time.
Clinical therapeutic benefits and measurable outcomes don’t show the full value of adaptive programming. The dancers are learning self-expression, healthy emotional outlets, connection, creativity, and the joy of ballet.
“I know the impact that dance has in my own life; I see it in my students,” Blessing says. “I want that opportunity to be available to everybody.”
The program developed in response to the needs of the community, says Roe. With two years of preparation and support from the program’s founding sponsor, the H.L. & Elizabeth M. Brown Foundation, Texas Ballet Theater is able to offer a safe, educational space for children who may not have had access to it previously. Roe and Blessing attended a workshop with industry leader Boston Ballet to learn adaptive dance methods and even took a mock class. Blessing says she wanted to be “ready and equipped.”
“The students and parents are the experts in their strengths and weaknesses,” Blessing says. “We are just here to facilitate a dance class.”
Blessing is key to linking Cook Children’s and TBT. She was an intern in Cook Children’s Child Life department and, with Roe, reached out to make the connection, according to PT/OT program manager Carolyn Mullins.
“We looked into it, and it looked like a wonderful opportunity for children in our community with special needs to practice the skills they learn in therapy in the real world with their peers and siblings,” Mullins says. “Those opportunities are few and far between and often difficult for families to find.”
The current Adaptive Dance program specifically serves young children with Down syndrome. Blessing was involved in the KinderFrogs program at TCU and has more experience working with children with Down syndrome than children with other disabilities. As the program grows and evolves, TBT hopes to add classes for dancers of all ages, as well as include programming for people with other disabilities.
“It’s a matter of listening to the community and seeing what they want,” says Blessing. “I am really hopeful for the future and what’s in store for this program.”
The class wraps up with “Let It Go” from Disney’s “Frozen” and some time for the children to freestyle. Instructors and the little dancers explore creating their own movements — usually spinning, jumping, and making faces in the mirror. This, more than any other part of the class, seems to have all the students on the same page.
Before the girls’ families are allowed in for pickup, all the students must be sitting quietly in a line against one wall. Roe opens the door and moms and dads and siblings flood into the room to reunite with their dancers.
“Let It Go” makes an encore performance, and all the students reprise the freestyle, this time tugging on the hands of parents and siblings while people take the opportunity for photos.
Some of Yua’s brothers and sisters join her on the dance floor after some good-natured prodding from the rest of the family while Howk videos on her phone. Sabeel spins around in circles with her arms wide and tongue out.
The kids wander down the hall to go home even more excited than when they arrived, amped up on Disney songs and endorphins. Slowly, calm and quiet fills the school as the door closes after the last of the families, leaving Roe, Blessing, and the volunteers to relax — if only for a moment.
Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, Texas Ballet Theater had to cut its second four-week adaptive dance series short. Roe says that the immediate impact of the virus does not change TBT’s long-term plans to expand and offer permanent adaptive dance programming. She encourages prospective students and families to check Texas Ballet Theater’s website and social media for updates about class schedules.
Programs like TBT’s Adaptive Dance highlight issues with accessibility and inclusion for people with disabilities in North Texas. At what point does specialized programming become isolation? Mullins and Howk both say there are benefits to inclusive and adaptive programming, and that each individual has different and specific needs.
“If there were four little girls with Down syndrome and four without, how much more effective would that class be?” Howk says. “They could model that behavior.”
“Inclusive programs can be a great benefit and learning experience for all of the children and staff that are participating,” Mullins says. “Adapted programs provide a safe learning environment for children with special needs that allows the student to participate in events and activities with their peers.”
Howk advocates for practicing love and compassion, saying, “It takes more work, but it’s worth it.”
“Our world moves so fast, and a lot of times people with different abilities just need things to slow down,” she says.
Many of Howk’s concerns about inclusion and kindness toward people with disabilities are applicable in a broader sense. She says people should be treated as an individual and not “arbitrarily benchmarked” by some made-up standard of what is “normal.” She worries that good intentions get lost in the “big machine” of society.
Months later, Yua still talks about ballet. Howk is considering signing her up for classes closer to their home.
“Every time you talk about ballet, she says, ‘I did that!’ and she shows her moves,” Howk says.
The Adaptive Dance program at Texas Ballet Theater has the ability to help launch a new demographic of people who love dance. It pursues its mission of focusing on art, access, and education. Howk would also add “love and compassion” to that list.
“You could see it on the teachers’ faces; they were loving our girls,” Howk says. “It was beautiful. They were teaching our girls their love of dance.”
