You may just run into some dancers at the Boise Depot this summer. That’s where Pivot Inclusive Dance Movement Therapy often holds classes, and the classes are open to people of all abilities.
“It's an inclusive dance class. It gives support if you need it, it adapts something if you need that, really it brings together people who need a little support in our community and makes them feel like they belong,” said Ali Landers, the creator of Pivot. “It's so good for their soul!”
The class is something truly special, but what's even more remarkable is the woman who started it. Landers has a love for dance, and for people in our community with special needs.
“Pivot, it comes out of wanting to share my love of dance and yoga in the community,” Landers said. “I grew up with a sister who had to use a wheelchair, because of that love, I started Pivot.”
Students of all ages are enjoying every minute, and they have a wide range of intellectual and physical disabilities.
From cerebral palsy to Down syndrome, to autism. No one is turned away, Landers will make the class work for each participant, no matter the disability.
“We do performances, we learn choreography we perform it,” Landers said. “Everyone is very helpful and giving and welcoming.”
She says everyone has a home here, and this class is therapeutic for each participant.
“They are all dancers, and they really just want to have a place that they can express themselves through dance,” Landers explained. “We want you to know that we have your back and you belong here, it's a big deal.”
For her dancers, that sense of belonging is everything, which can be seen in their faces.
“It's magic! It's this delightful amazing magical thing that brings us all together, that bonds us all together and we are one!" she said. "You belong here, you matter, you belong. That's what happens! and it's so awesome, I can't imagine anything else I would rather do, than this work."
The dancers love her and are hoping she'll teach forever.
“It's beautiful, it is so rewarding. These people give me so much more than I could ever ask for," she said.
Pivot Movement also offers adaptive yoga classes.
For more information about Pivot Inclusive Dance Movement Therapy, and how to enroll, check out their page on Facebook.
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