By C. Perera, JadeTimes News
More efforts are needed to highlight the work of disabled performers, say the organizers of one of Europe's premier disability arts festivals. The Unity Festival, established by the Welsh theatre company Hijinx in 2008, is currently taking place in Cardiff and will run until Sunday. According to Ben Pettitt Wade, Unity and Hijinx’s artistic director, the festival was created to address the challenges disabled artists face in securing work. While there have been improvements, he emphasized the need for continued opportunities.
Fernanda Amaral, director of the Brazilian dance company Dance without Frontiers, highlighted the festival's significance, noting that it unites performers and audience members with and without disabilities. Amaral's group is performing "Fresta Poética," a street show featuring dancers using canes due to visual impairments. She remarked that crutches can transform disability into a "superpower," exemplified by a ballet dancer using crutches to perform a "grand jeté."
Pettitt Wade stressed the importance of featuring international acts to promote Wales as an inclusive destination. Cardiff based Stammermouth is also participating, presenting "Choo Choo!," a show about obsessive compulsive disorder and intrusive thoughts, written and performed by Nye Russell Thompson, who praised the festival as "brilliant and necessary."
The Unity Festival has previously been hosted in Bangor and Llanelli.
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